Feelings of a Scarlet Knight
by DeadKingDread97
Summary: A 30 Chapter of the pairings of the Knight Paragon Cordelia and the Grandmaster of the Shephards Robin. One of my all time favorite pairings ever.
1. Chapter 1: Getting Lost

_Author's Note: So this is my first fanfiction. I love the ship between the Male Avatar and Cordelia (despite many friends attempts at proving I have "shit taste"). I will try my best to keep this uploaded daily. So enjoy the first chapter of my 30 day OTP challenge_

 _Getting Lost Somewhere_

 __This day couldn't have gotten worse. Robin and Cordelia had made plans, gotten the time off duty from Chrom, and had gotten to the beautiful beach, the perfect scene for a honeymoon of the two lovebirds... but then bandits and storms had come along to ruin the perfect landscape for their entire stay, dampening the moods of the snow-haired tactician and knight paragon.

"I told you we should have turned right at the fork" said Cordelia, as Robin stopped to examine the map for the twelfth time. "We could have stopped at the town for the night and gotten directions in the morning. Catria is too exhausted to move another inch" she said as she stroked the mane of her pegasus

The Grandmaster had been observing the map from the light of his Fire Tome, trying to match the markers to their current surroundings "Now, it says the town we passed is the halfway point to Ylisse, but I don't see the river or mountain pass on here at all"

Cordelia exhaled with total exasperation. "You're not even listening to me." She had hopped down from Catria and stamped off to the river, arms crossed, keeping her back to her husband as she sat at the river's edge and mindlessly tossing pebbles into the dark waters.

Robin looked up, shocked, from the map, and after a minute of collecting his thoughts, he followed after her and sat down beside the gorgeous woman. "Cordy… I… look, we'll stop here, set up camp, and figure it out in the morning...do you want to talk?"  
Cordelia huffed and ran a hand through her hair before speaking. "We get time to be together alone, and what do we do? Fight off bandits for Anna, and then get stuck in our cabin for a whole weekend." She placed her head on his shoulder.

Robin leaned his head onto hers and placed his arm around her shoulder "Well, we did get some fun time alone." He smiled devilishly at her.

The pegasus rider blushed hard, the red of her face matching the color of her hair, and shoved him playfully. "Be quiet, you." Cordelia shuffled nervously and continued, "I… was a little excited to collect some sea shells, and not being allowed on the beach was torture."  
The tactician held her closer. "How about this. We go back in a couple months saying it's for a special survey mission, and stay for a couple days, then bring back some information thrown around about some risen or bandits. Then, Chrom will send the Shepherds to figure it out. A couple more days right there."

Cordelia grinned. "My, what a devilish thinker you are. Let us get some rest them. We've got quite the battle strategy to prepare. All we can do after is leave it in the gods' hands"  
Robin snuggled into her neck. "Well, maybe not. I decide my own fate"

 _Ending Author's Notes: So my first chapter of the story. Pretty short. Will get the hang of writing longer chapters in the future. Hope you all enjoy_


	2. Chapter 2: Pet Names

_Authors Note:_ _Should mention these chapters are in no linear order_

 _Chapter 2: Pet Names_

It had been a few months after the defeat of Gangrel, and the wedding for Exalt Chrom and the new queen of Ylisse, Sumia was just on the horizon. But as it would happen, another couple had risen from the conflict.

On any regular day in Ylisse a shout could be heard all along the castle walls "WHAAAAAAAT?!"

"Sumia please keep it down" Cordelia knew that Sumia would have quite the reaction, but this was overkill. The two pegasus riders had been grooming their respective steeds, and Sumia had looked as if she received the most crucial bit of information in the world.

"I knew you seemed off since the battle, but I thought it was just about the wedding. I didn't know you and Robin finally became an item" The new queen was absolutely giddy at learning the news of her greatest friend in the world finally having someone to love and who loves her back "I'm so happy for you. I need details. How long have you been together, who made the first move, oh even better what kind of names do you use for each other"

Cordelia had laughed at her friend's glee over her and Robin's budding relationship "I don't see what names have to do with us, Sumia"

Sumia had the biggest look of appall and horror on her face as if someone had just punched Chrom in the face "You know. Like a cute pet name. It's a great way to signify your bond with Robin. Like...Chrom calls me his Cinnamia Pie, and it just makes my heart feel like it's filled with feathers" Sumia had stopped brushing her pegasus and stared off out the window of the stable towards the castle.

Taking the silence for as long as she could, Cordelia got to thinking on it ' _We haven't been together too long, but now that it's mentioned...Robin has only ever called me by my name or Cordy. Never referring to me as...something more_ '

Letting anxiety get the better of her, Cordelia had rushed out of the stable, giving Sumia and her pegasus a rushed apology and good-bye. Needing to find Robin as soon as possible

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Cordelia was power walking through most of the castle trying to find Robin, but was nowhere to be found at all. Not in the library, the strategy room, his own room, or out on the training grounds. She had nearly given up hope when she walked in on quite the comical scene in the kitchen. The floors and walls dusted white with what looked like powdered sugar, Maribelle holding Gaius by the ear and doing a great job of both talking and yanking it off, and Robin covered in head to toe with the white powder, wiping his face off with a damp cloth.

Cordelia took a few minutes to process the visual scene, before finally walking over to Robin. "Would you like to fill me in on what exactly I happened in on?" The redhead inquired.

Robin took the cloth away from his face, still a good amount of sugar blending in well with his hair, and sighed as he pointed to the sugar tongued thief "Gaius had wanted to add something more to his sweets so of course he decided to try to get the powdered sugar from the top of the pantry, I tried talking him out of it, and then he overestimated the exact weight of the bag…..and well this was the outcome" the tactician had pinched the bridge of his nose.

Cordelia had smiled at the thought, and couldn't help but laugh. Robin looked as if to reprimand her, but had broken down into a smile as well at seeing her face filled with glee.

The pegasus rider gently grabbed the cloth from his hand and had started dusting out his hair while saying "I spend the afternoon trying to find you over a silly little thought, and you just relieve a lot of worries from my mind"

This grabbed Robin's attention "What kind of thoughts were you having?"

"Oh just….we've been together for a few months now. Just thought we could take it another step up in our relationship" The blush rising in her cheeks gave Robin the wrong idea. He quickly stood up, his cheeks an equal red and stammers as he does his best to respond "Cordelia, I-i-i'm not s-sure if we're ready f-for that. We're not even married yet"

Cordelia caught the implication of what she had said and quickly waved her hands back and forth "No, no, no, no! I didn't mean that, oh gods I haven't prepared myself mentally for that yet. I just meant….be a little more romantic to each other. Something like pet names for each other"

The tactician breathed a sigh of relief "Ok, that's...I thought you meant...nevermind." He scratched the back of his head as he looks to her "Pet names, huh? Yeah that should be fun" Robin had paced back and forth, looking at Cordelia from every half a minute, until he snapped his hands "I got it. How about Crimson Dove. Two symbols of love. Works well with your hair color, and the accompanying accessories. Is that one….do you like it"

Cordelia smiled as she hugged Robin around the waist "It's perfect. Now my turn, and I think mine got answered when I walked in. How about my Snow Holly"

A laugh could be heard from the corner of the room, and the couple remembered they were not alone. "So cute how Red and Bubbles coming up with nicknames for each other. Bubbles got a good one. Eh Holly?" the sugar thief laughed again before Maribelle yanked his ear, and proceeded to pull him out of the kitchen. "You have no room to be enjoying yourself Gaius. We still have to tell Frederick about your escapade, I believe he will be so happy I told him that you'll go through a grueling week of Frederick's training"

At those words, Gaius' face had paled at the thought. Cordelia and Robin beamed at the two leaving and turned back to each other. Feeling so much closer to each other. No words needing to be said.

Author's note: Had to work a morning shift at work that was incredibly dead. So during that time, i was able to put together the ideas for future chapters, and took a good amount thinking up the pet names Cordelia and Robin would call each other. Cordelia i was proud of. Wanted to go off of the wing clips she wears. Crimson and doves both being symbols for love. I love that mushy stuff. Robin's was a little tougher. Until holly came up (The Celtic meaning of holly deals with ruling the wintery realms with style, dignity and honor even in the midst of great challenge.) Longer than the first one. So i'm proud of that. Chapter 3 will be a modern AU


	3. Chapter 3: Blind Date Jitters

Chapter 3: Blind Double Date

(Modern AU)

"Chrom? Are you sure this is a good idea? I've never been on a date before, let alone a double or a blind date" Robin said as he straightened his tie in the men's bathroom, with Chrom watching near the door.

"Robin you have taken on late night shifts at Cometcoin, while studying for classes, and still waking up with a kick in your step and a whole lot of energy drinks. Taking on a blind date will be a cakewalk" Chrom slapped Robin on the back with a smile that could spark confidence even in the Cowardly Lion.

Chrom's phone buzzed, and he looked down to see a text from Sumia. "Speaking of. Our dates are here. Come on". The two walked out of the bathroom, and Chrom was the first to spot Sumia and her accompanying friend at the entrance, and pointed them out to Robin. "There you are"

Robin's eyes followed to where Chrom was pointing. Seeing Sumia first, and then the girl next to her. She was wearing a light blue wrap dress that went well with her red….recognizable…..hair.

Before Cordelia could turn to see Chrom and Robin, the latter had quickly ran back into the bathroom to hide.

"Chrom, please tell me that's not Cordelia. I can't. I haven't mentally prepared myself for that scenario" Robin had to hold his heavily beating heart and control his rapid breathing before he continued to talk to Chrom "You know that I've had a crush on her since high school."

Chrom smiled once again. How could he ever forget that one fact of his friend. "Yeah I do know. You think you're clever, sneaking around on the topic, and asking questions on Cordelia, whenever Sumia comes over. You may be a genius my friend, but when it comes to love….well"

Robin sighed as he peeked out from the door, the girls already sitting at the table. Sumia nervously looking towards Chrom and Robin, and Cordelia fumbling around with her thumbs. "But...what if i mess up on a topic? What if I blabber on without stop and bore her? What if….she doesn't want anything to do with me? I have heard some rumors around that she may...have feelings for a certain someone" Robin's for once showing full worry and anxiety. He has never been this nervous before over anything, even for a final.

Chrom walked into the restroom and rested his hands on Robin's shoulders "Calm down, take deep breaths, and listen carefully. Sumia and I will be there to help the two of you. We'll lead the conversations. And don't worry about those rumors. I have a feeling you'll be pleasantly surprised" Chrom lead Robin out of the bathroom, and out to their patient dates.

Author's Note: Sorry this is a day late. I've been having to work mornings most of the week, and it's finals week. So it should be good after a while. I was just really tired the other day and couldn't finish. Next chapter is going to be fun for me a bit. Inspired by an awesome artist who does great work on Robin and Cordelia fanart


	4. Chapter 4: Surprise Visit

Chapter 4: Surprise Visit

A year has passed since the defeat of Grima, where Robin had taken the risk, and sacrificed himself to permanently best the fell dragon. Seven months after Robin had returned back to the Ylisse, to the shepherds, and to Cordelia. On his return, however, he had learned his eldest daughter along with Owain and Inigo, had gone off to some far off land to prevent a disastrous war.

Even if Severa was from the future, to a Robin and Cordelia from another time. She was still their daughter and meant the world to the two of them. Robin would be lying if he said he wasn't worried or anxious for her. Robin as a father was concerned for her, but also had faith in her skills as a warrior to come back safely. The parents weren't expecting the company their daughter would bring back.

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Dawn had just broken through the skyline. Barely a soul was awake in the halidom. A carriage had stopped outside of the manor belonging to Robin and Cordelia, granted to them by Exalt Chrom. Severa stood outside of the manor, her hand raised to the door, but not allowing it to connect. Nervous as to how her mother would react to her appearing on the doorstep after quite a few years away - at least for her, it had been a few. Her hand lowered from the door, but another rested on her shoulder. Severa looked over to Subaki, the man she married during her time in Valla.

Subaki took a step closer to her and spoke. "You'll be okay. You're not alone in this. From the stories you've told me, your mother is quite understanding. We should be fine explaining, despite the..." He looked back to the carriage they had arrived in. "unique nature of our family."

Severa sighed and hugged Subaki tightly. "I'm nervous is all. This is going to take a lot of explaining." She let go of her husband and turned back to the front door, took a couple seconds to collect her thoughts and knocked on it. After a few minutes of waiting, the door opened, but instead of her mother being the one to answer the door like she expected, it was her father: the man she thought was still lost from the battle with Grima.

The tension in the air was thick enough to be cut with a Levin Sword, as Robin slowly realized he was looking to his daughter. "S-Severa?"

Severa's eyes teared up as she rushed forward and hugged her father. "You're okay! Thank the gods you're okay." Severa half cried, and half laughed as she hugged her father tightly, not wanting to let go.

"Robin, who's at the doo-" The father and daughter looked up from their hug to see Cordelia standing a few feet behind Robin. She was silently staring at her daughter, finally moving forwards after minutes of silence and embracing her eldest her.

"I'm so happy to see you home safe!" Cordelia exclaimed as she held her daughter's head close to her chest, Robin hugging both of them.

Subaki smiled as he witnessed the warming family reunion, patiently standing off to the side. Severa opened her eyes to meet Subaki's, and cleared her throat, realizing there was more she wanted to say. "Mom, Dad. I'm happy to see you both, but there's…. quite the explanation I... we, need to give you. This," she said as she walked over to Subaki, standing next to him, "is my husband."

Cordelia looked between the two, taking a moment to respond to the sudden news. "Well, that's fine, I don't see a problem with that. Your father and I met and married in close to the same time you were gone."

Severa looked confused "The same time? How...how long have I been gone from here?"  
Robin and Cordelia looked to each other, both with the same questioning glance. "You've only been gone for a few months," Robin explained. It was at this point that Severa caught on.

"I've been gone for a few years at the least. Oh gods." Severa ran a hand through her crimson hair, thinking about how to best word it. "I knew this part would be hard to explain, but the time difference makes it more awkward than it should. Subaki and I… we have a child, a daughter named Caeldori." Severa blushed slightly, motioning towards the carriage while out stepped a young woman that left the newly discovered grandparents with their jaws hanging open. Not only was the woman, who they assumed was Caeldori, about as old as how Morgan was (The future one, not baby one), but she was a striking carbon copy of Cordelia, down to the wing clips in her hair.

Caeldori walked up to the group and bowed to her grandparents. "It is nice to meet you. Mother has told me so many stories of the two of you."

Robin and Cordelia shook themselves from their shock and took another moment to collect their thoughts. Robin cleared his throat and spoke up first. "Well… it's certainly nice to meet you, Caeldori. Quite shocking, but… we can talk this through. Why don't the three of you come inside, I'll make some tea, and you can fill us in on your recent escapades."

Severa looked down and scratched at her chin "Yeah, there's another thing. It's five of us."

Caeldori seemed just as nervous "I am also married. We can tell you of how it came to be, but…. I am married to the King of Valla, and have a daughter as well." At hearing that, the last two patrons of the carriage stepped out. A white haired man wearing attire similar to dragon scales, and a girl with hair pulled up in a bun and wearing a similar outfit to her father.

Severa smiled awkwardly as she took in her stunned parents faces. "You're also great-grandparents…. Haha, surprise!"

Author's Note: I do have the fan theory that Caeldori and Corrin are the reincarnated or alternate versions of Robin and Cordelia. It is a weird thought, but I enjoy the family reunion at it. I liked working on this one. Next one will be quite a bit AU-ish with original characters. Based on conversations of waifu's for Awakening.


	5. Chapter 5: Horror Night

Author's Note: I'm back. With the holidays upon us I've been doing a lot of shifts at my occupation, and honestly been tired a lot. Finals are over so that's a bit less stress for me. I know I said an AU with a few OC's is next, but that's still in a review and editing stage so here's the next theme that was after. As a side note, the last chapter was inspired by a crimsondeaki picture. They are a pretty awesome artist and should check them out. I feel bad for the delay in these updates. Please enjoy this one. Kind of a continuation from Chapter 3.

Horror Night (Modern AU)

It was a muggy afternoon, one only a few months after the blind date. Cordelia and Robin had grown close since then, constantly surprising each other with their feelings for each other. But there was still something missing, they realized.

Three figures were seated at a cafe: Cordelia sitting across from Chrom and Sumia, with the redhead becoming lost in thought. Tonight was a movie date for Cordelia and Robin, and it was Cordelia's turn to pick the movie, so she wanted to pick one appropriate for the stage they were at in their relationship. The two had started truly dating about two months after the blind date, but the two had only ventured as far as holding hands and affectionate kisses on the cheek, only daring so far as a kiss on the lips during three special moments in their time together. Now, Cordelia wanted only for them to feel closer, close the gap they place between themselves.

Sumia spoke up when Cordelia returned from her thoughts and mentioned the movie night to Chrom. "What you need is a scary movie. One where the both of you are so scared you hold onto each other, and maybe," Sumia blinked with a flirtatious smile. "Maybe you'll both be too scared to even be left alone for the night!"

"Ah, yes, I remember our first horror movie together: _An American Werewolf in London_ ," Chrom interjected. "But I wouldn't suggest going with that one. Robin tends to overanalyze a lot of movies he sees, with monster movies being chief among them."

Cordelia looked down to the hot cocoa she was holding and swirled her finger around the rim of the cup. "Well, you _are_ his friend, Chrom. Don't you have an idea of what'll scare Robin most?"

Chrom scratched at his chin for a minute, deep in thought. "Well, I do remember one story Robin told me, about a movie he glimpsed his parents watching when he was a kid." With that, Chrom leaned in and whispered into Cordelia's ear, as her mouth twisted into a mischievous smile.

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It was late into the night, and Cordelia was patiently waiting for Robin to return from the kitchen so they could start the movie she had picked out, which rested hidden away in her bag.

Before long, Robin emerged from the kitchen brandishing a bowl of popcorn in one hand and holding two bottles of soda in the other. "Alright, snacks are ready. Now we just need to put in the movie. I can't wait to see what you picked out for us."

He plopped down next to her, placing the popcorn bowl in between them. Cordelia smiled over to him. "It took a bit of deciding, but I think I got one we'll enjoy." Grabbing it from her bag, Cordelia held up a DVD case depicting a girl with only an eye staring out at the viewer, dark hair hiding most of her face. Cordelia saw Robin wince at the sight of the movie, but he almost immediately regained his composure.

"T-the _Grudge_ huh? I only saw bits of that before. Can't… wait to watch it fully, haha." Cordelia could hear the shaking in his voice.

"Well," Cordelia started as she got up to turn off the lights, afterwards walking towards the DVD player and popping in the disc. "Let's get movie night started, then!"

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By the time the movie ended, and the credits started rolling, Robin was clutching onto Cordelia's arm, evidently scared for his life. He had turned the lights back on about a quarter of the way into the movie, and ran immediately to the comfort of his girlfriend.

Cordelia was the first to say anything afterwards. "Well, tonight was fun, but it's getting late. I should be getting home soon."

At hearing this, Robin quickly shot up from the couch. "Wait!" He took a minute to regain his composure, but soon continued. "It's a little late to be out on your own, you know. You can just stay here for the night. I'll sleep on the couch, and you can take the bed. I'm sure Sumia won't mind if you're gone for a night."

"Oh?" Cordelia walked up towards him. "Are you sure it's because it's late? Or do you just not want to be alone in a dark apartment by yourself?" She grinned up at him mischievously.

Robin turned his head to the side and scratched at his cheek nervously. "Well, umm, maybe a bit of both."  
"Haha, well…" She trailed her fingers up his chest flirtatiously as she spoke. "Maybe I will. If you're a good boy, and make a promise of pancakes for breakfast then, maybe you can share the bed with me. Lucky for you, I brought an overnight bag."

Turning around with a smug smile, Cordelia walked off down the hallway to the bedroom and looked over her shoulder to her boyfriend. Robin was shocked, his mouth hanging open for a moment before was able to form coherent thoughts again. "Wait, you brought an overnight bag? Did you plan this!? Cordelia!"

Author's Note: Yeah I'm terrified of _The Grudge._ I like to consider myself a horror connoisseur, but that movie scarred me as a child, and I can't watch it at all.


	6. Chapter 6: Christmas

_AN: Because i'm a procrastinating nerd I had to move this chapter up on the list so it can work with the holiday time here. Another Modern AU here for ya. Sending us into the future._

Chapter 6: Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas, as we set our eyes upon a small home in a tiny neighborhood. Not a creature stirred in the quiet, white night, except for a certain family of four. A mother and father are seen doing their best to quell the excitement from their two young daughters.

"How can reindeer hold up a whole sleigh with Santa and presents?"  
"Are you sure Santa will like the cookies?"

"How will Santa get into the house if we don't have a chimney?"

Every year the two little girls bombarded their parents with questions on the magical gift bearer, and each year the parents happily answered their daughters' bombardment of questions. It was Robin who was made to answer the questions. "Magic can make the impossible possible; same goes for magic reindeer. Santa loves all kinds of cookies as they are made from good kids like you two, and Santa can make a special doorway near the tree. That's how he can get into houses like ours without a fireplace."

Cordelia smiled warmly up at her husband as she tucked Morgan into bed, who snuggled beneath her covers, and gave her a kiss on the forehead. The parents wished their daughters merry dreams, telling them that they'll see them in the morning, as well as to what Santa brought the nice girls.

The exhausted parents plopped down on the couch as Robin took a long exhaling breath as he rubbed the back of his neck. "The most joyous, yet tiring time of the year without a doubt."

Cordelia chuckled as she pulled a fleece blanket over them. "Well, it's all worth it when you get to hear their excited screams in the morning. Speaking of, the parents are all out in the car, right?"

Robin nodded his head. "Yep. Wait a few more hours. I don't trust their little snores just yet."  
Cordelia sarcastically put a finger on her chin with a sly smile. "Gee, I wonder where they get their inquisitiveness from?"

Robin raised an eyebrow. "Oh, well if it's not from you, then I guess a certain someone isn't curious," He pulls a present from under the couch. "as to what their special someone got them?"

Her eyes lit up and her mouth fell open as she saw the present Robin brought out before her. "Robin… you didn't have to."

"I didn't have to, but I wanted to. Merry Christmas, my beautiful dove."

Cordelia gingerly took the box from her husband, still reacting to the happy surprise, and opened the lid, revealing a charm bracelet with little figurines, each representing the members of their family, surrounding a dove figure made out of ruby. "Robin, my goodness. It's gorgeous. Thank you, a million times thank you!" Cordelia leapt into Robin's arms, wrapping hers around his neck and kissing every inch of his cheek that she could get at.

Robin chuckled at his wife's passionate showing, and held her close in a loving hug for a few minutes. After a while, Cordelia spoke up as she sprang up from the couch. "Give me a few minutes. I can get you a gift real quick."

Robin watched his wife's retreating form as she entered the nearby kitchen with a confundled look on his face. After waiting about six minutes, Cordelia returned from the kitchen, holding her hands behind her back. "Alright, close your eyes," she said with a devilish grin on her face.

Robin cocked his eyebrow, but obeyed the simple command. He felt her put something on his head and then her arms put around his neck "Okay. You may open your eyes now."

"Oh, may I, your majesty?" He felt her push his shoulder playfully as he chuckled. He opened his eyes to see a white fluffy bauble in front of his face, and knew that he had to be wearing a Santa hat. But it was the little decoration adorned with white berries that gave away the reason for the gift.

"Mistletoe, huh?" Robin mused as his eyes wandered from the dangling ball back to his wife.

"Merry Christmas, my love." The redhead leaned in to her husband, but he didn't need any more convincing as he closed the distance between their lips.

The lovers shared a deep kiss for a few minutes before they separated and pressed their foreheads together. It was Robin who spoke up first. "You know, we do have quite a lot of time before morning. We can go up to our room for one more early holiday gift."

Cordelia giggled as she brought her mouth closer to his ear "I would love that, you know."

She squealed in delight as Robin bent over and picked her up princess-style and whisked her off up to their bedroom.

AN: Wanted to be sure I got this one in by the end of the holiday, close enough. It's around 1 in the morning as the time I post this. Happy Holidays everybody

A/N 2: Had to re-upload this chapter. My nerdy friend editor replaced "mistletoe" with "metal gear" so now i have to give him his season beatings. Thank you guest for pointing that out


	7. Chapter 7: Seduction

Chapter 7: Seduction

Six months after Ylisse and Regna Ferox successfully overthrew the Mad King, and no more than two months after the wedding of Cordelia and Robin; the newlyweds, however, hadn't had much time to each other due having to deal with the aftermath of the war, with the exception of their wedding night and their plans for a honeymoon trip to a beach resort. This night, however, was one where Robin was planning to surprise Cordelia with time together.

His plan was pretty simple: Robin would wait for Cordelia to leave their shared room first, then decorate it lavishly with the cliche flower petals and candle sticks expected of a romantic atmosphere. Later in the day, he would attempt to excuse himself a couple of hours early from work, promising Chrom that he'd make it up later, and then request that Cordelia meet him in their room for a few post-war reports. If all went according to plan, the moment she opened the door she'd see exactly why he decided to have them meet in their room, as opposed to his office. The plan was simple and straightforward enough that it would go perfectly, he thought, and logically, it should.

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Cordelia POV:

Cordelia was surprised, as Robin was slow to start the day, but he was always right behind her when they left to do their job at the castle. Today, however, he'd had a very, very slow start. Cordelia was too preoccupied to think much of it, as today was going to be her first day with the new pegasus knight recruits. She felt that, with how distracted she was with thoughts of Robin's recent change in behavior, she was forgetting something. She wasn't used to the type of respect the recruits were giving her, and truthfully, she thought, it made her a little uncomfortable, but she knew she'd have to put on a strong face for them. After surviving most of the day's rampant thoughts, she turned over the recruits to Frederick for advanced training in the lance. Wiping her brow of the hot day's work, she caught sight of Sumia walking towards her.

"So how is it going, Mrs. Captain of the Pegasus Knights?" Sumia asked affably as she paroused closer to Cordelia. The redhead turned to face her and rubbed the other's head playfully as she responded in kind.

"About as good as the new queen of Ylisse, I say," she returned with a smirk. At this, the shier woman turned away, embarrassed.

"There's just so much studying involved in being a royal! Much more so than you would think. You'd think a lot, but it's more," Sumia whined to her friend, not quite giving off the image one would expect from the halidom's queen.

Cordelia smiled reassuringly and moved her hand to reposition a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, but in the action, suddenly realized what she was forgetting: she'd left her wing hair clips back in the room. Cordelia explained to the other what she'd forgotten in her room, leading Sumia to volunteer to go up to grab it, considering she had to make a stop to deliver a few books to Robin anyway. Thanking her friend, Cordelia returned to cleaning up the training area from what the recruits had left behind, planning on reprimanding them for their neglectfulness, when a page came up to her a few minutes later.

"Captain Cordelia!" the messenger exclaimed in greeting. "Grandmaster Robin wishes to see you in his chambers for a report on the current Pegasus Knight situation." This greatly confused Cordelia, not understanding why Robin was sending for her in their shared chamber instead of his office space, easily the more work-centered locale of the two.

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Robin POV:

All the preparations were made: the page was sent for Cordelia, the atmospheric candles were lit, and Robin had assumed what he believed to be the most seductive pose possible on their bed, in which he would lie horizontally with his exposed back to the door and the blanket covering his lower half. After waiting for just a few minutes, which to him seemed to drag on much longer, he heard the chamber door open. Not wasting a minute, excited as he was to finally enact his plan, he spoke up. "Well, I assume you are quite surprised, am I riiii…." His voice trailed off with an increasing tone of panic as he turned his head to face the portcullis as he finished the sentence, but stops as he realizes that the one who walked in wasn't Cordelia, but Sumia instead.

Sumia stood wide eyed, her cheeks flaring up to a bright ruby red, dropping the heavy tomes she held almost immediately. Mortified, Robin quickly brought the blanket up to cover his whole chest, and looking away from Sumia in panicked shame. It was a while before either could speak, and it was Sumia who commented first. "I'm just… ummm… I'm dropping off some books. Let us both agree to forget this happened. Deal?"

Robin did not hesitate in agreeing to Sumia's proposition, and with that, Sumia spun about on her heel and promptly left the room. Hurrying down the corridor, she passed by Cordelia, who tried to spark up conversation, oblivious to the situation unfolding. "Oh Sumia, did you get my.."

"I DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING, I SWEAR! DON'T BE MAD AT ME! I DIDN'T EXPECT IT, BYE!"

Cordelia stood paralyzed, staring in confusion at Sumia's swiftly retreating back before turning towards her room, wondering what has made Sumia so flustered.


	8. Chapter 8: Fortune

Chapter 8: Fortune

"Sumia, I don't think this is really to the best of my interests. I'm not so sure that I need to see a fortune teller." The two meandered under the midday sun as Cordelia and Sumia found themselves traversing the merchant streets of Ylisse. Sumia was excited to spend the day with her closest friend before Cordelia left for a lengthy mission, dedicated to protecting the border between Ylisse and Plegia. Sumia had wanted to give Cordelia a special treat by taking her to a fortune teller/love guru who had quite the reputation in the city, as many of the booth's fortunes were said to come true.

"Don't tell me you're not the least bit curious as to what he might say! Sully told me all about him, and how he was the one who told her that she'd fall in love with a man no other woman sees, and now she's engaged to Kellam, you know?" Sumia stated in response to her friend's skepticism. They quickly reached the small shack, secluded and quaint, covered in dark purple and blue hued curtains with silver accents that marked the home of the fortune teller.

"I still don't know about this, Sumia. If I wanted to rely on fortunes to guide my future, then I'd just come to you and your… petal pulling. I'm just not one to listen to hypotheticals," Cordelia said.

"Come onnnn. It'll be fun! Come on, come on, come on!" Sumia urged her friend in, holding Cordelia's hands and practically jumping up and down in excitement.

Cordelia sighed, but with a smile on her face, she conceded. "All right, all right," the redhead said, reluctantly walked into the hut. The first thing that she noticed was the strong smell of cinnamon hanging in the air from more than an adequate amount of incense. Several strange carvings lined the walls, bizarre symbols etched into them all. Cordelia walked closer to inspect one of the carvings, giving it an intense stare when a raspy cough from the corner of the room startled her.

She looked towards the source, catching a glance of a figure sitting at a low table in the shadows of the room's corner, so concealed that Cordelia would have noticed him last. She couldn't make out what the figure looked like as they wore a heavy hooded robe over their face, concealing most details the face would otherwise convey. The figure soon spoke up, revealing to Cordelia that they were a man. "A questioning soul coming to learn what fate has in store for them? Well, well, sit down, young one, and I shall reveal what the future holds for you." He gestured to the opposite side of the table,motioning for her to situate herself there, and quickly proceeded to grab a few items from the side.

Cordelia took the seat almost reluctantly as she waited for the man to end his preparations. The prophet pulled out a small sheet of parchment, a quill, and a small bottle dark ink. He dipped the quill in the ink and held it close over the parchment, while reaching his other, obviously weathered and wrinkled hand out to the pegasus knight in an inviting gesture. Cordelia hesitated at first, but resigned to reach out and hold the hand of the man. His head instantly reared back as he took in a deep breath and his other hand raced over the parchment. It took only a minute for the man to finish writing down on the parchment, and as soon as he was done he let go of Cordelia's hand and handed over the writing. She took it and went to her coin purse, but the mysterious man held up his hand, saying, "No payment necessary. Have a nice day, ma'am."

Cordelia was more confused by this than anything else. "You don't ask for a fee? How do you stay in business?"

The cloaked man merely chuckled at this. "It would be quite terrible for those paying for merely wanting to know what the future has in store."

Cordelia was shocked at hearing this, but decided to concede to his wishes and bowed to the man, leaving the hut feeling somewhat unfulfilled. Sumia was pacing back and forth in front of the curtained entrance and suddenly jumped in front of her friend as she came back out onto the street. "So," pondered Sumia "What did he say?"

Cordelia held up the note as she said, "He didn't say much. Just gave me this short note." Sumia patiently waited as her friend unfolded the note and read it aloud.

The one who has risen above the fell

Will be the one to lead the paragon to her wedding bells

Their love conquering that cursed blood of his

A true selfless act that will save all of Ylisse

Both Sumia and Cordelia took their time to process the written words. It was Cordelia who spoke up first. "The one who has risen above the fell? Does he mean the fell dragon? It could reference the exalted bloodline, right?" A hint of hope stained her voice with the thought of being destined to be with Chrom.

Sumia scratched her head. "I'm not sure. 'Risen above the fell'... wouldn't that technically mean they were among the fell in the first place? And this 'love conquering that cursed blood of his,' I don't think Chrom would call his blood cursed."

Cordelia sighed as she put the note away. "Well, whatever it means, as every story goes, I won't fully understand the prophecy until it happens. Now come on, Sumia. I want to spend my last day in Ylisse with my best friend before I get sent off for who knows how long."

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A year has now passed since that day in the hut, and two lovers were walking down the shops, looking around for the items they will want as part of their wedding day. Merely window shopping at the moment, the smell of cinnamon from one small store bought one of the two to a halt. She looked at the hut and the smell brought a smile to her face. She reached into her bag and pulled out a coin purse and laid it at the entrance of the hut before running off to catch up with her fiance.

 **A/N:** _Hey everyone i know it has been quite a while since i updated. Really sorry about that. Well for that here is two whole chapters. Sorry again for the delay_


	9. Chapter 9: After Valentine's Date

Chapter 9: After Valentine's Date

 _(Modern AU)_

"Soooooooooooo Cordy, how did your special Valentine's date with Robin go?" an inquisitive Lissa shouted to Cordelia across the dinner table in Sumia and Cordelia's shared apartment. Lissa had arrived extremely early that morning, overly eager to learn of her friends' special dates from the day before. Sumia, glad to recount her day, spoke in gleeful reminiscence of how Chrom had taken her out to a dinner-and-dance gala, at which time he'd given her a promise ring.

Wanting to hear more about her friends' romance, Lissa had started to ask Cordelia for more and more information on her date. Cordelia took a minute to collect her thoughts before responding. "Well, it went fine at first... the end, however, is up for debate."

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Cordelia could tell Robin had gone through much planning for the date: A picnic up on a hill, overlooking the city, a delicious packed meal, and a small fireworks display, arranged by Robin, over their location. The night, as the planned events transpired, went very well: it was simple and romantic. They spent a good amount of time discussing their families and past. Cordelia told Robin of how she went to a private, girls-only school, admitted that she was constantly bullied by her classmates, told of her long-lasting friendship with Sumia, and her idolization of her counselor Phila.

Robin, in turn, spoke of how his parents divorced when he was too young to remember much of it, that he went to live with his mother as a result, and that he became estranged from his father. He went into detail on how his mother fell ill a few years ago, and had passed away from it, noticing it too late, and that Chrom and his family were friends with his mother and were kind enough to take him in. Robin went silent after mentioning the memory, but was brought back when Cordelia placed her hand reassuringly on his.

Then, the end of the night came. Robin, after bringing her home, walked Cordelia to her door and wished her goodnight, but stayed behind in an awkward pause, debating his next move.

Robin's significant other saw that he was fidgeting, and felt some initiative was needed. She moved forward as Robin began to speak up. "Well, I hope you enjoyed your nigh-mmph"

In that moment of passion, Cordelia pressed her lips against his. She pulled back after a quick second and was expecting… well, she wasn't sure what she was expecting, but when she saw his face, it was filled with complete shock. He brought his hand up to his mouth and covered it in disbelief. Cordelia muttered a quick apology and closed the door as she turned away in embarrassment. She laid her back to the door and covered her own mouth in an identical fashion. "Why did I do that? Why did I do that? Why did I do thaaaaat?"

Robin stood there on the porch for close to five minutes after the door closed on him, slowly processing what exactly happened before contemplating knocking on the door to apologize to Cordy for his reaction. He decided against it, thinking she'll want to process as well, and promptly left.

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"AND HE JUST STOOD THERE?!" Lissa yelled incredulously.

"It does sound like Robin, actually" Sumia replying to Lissa's outburst with a smirk. "I bet that had to be his first kiss. He was probably really taken aback."

But Cordelia only told them a little bit of the story, for she'd received a message from Robin three hours after the event. And now, looking at it again, she smiled to herself as she held the phone to her chest. 

" _I'm sorry for standing like the idiot there. Just….wow…..i wouldn't even have attempted it…..i love you cordy. Sweet dreams love xoxo"_


	10. Chapter 10: Goodbye's

Chapter 10: Goodbye

"EVERYBODY HOLD ONTO SOMETHING! NOW!" From the head of the Fell Dragon Grima came Chrom's voice, heavy with worry and urgency. Each Shepherd, understanding the urgency, quickly grabbed onto any anchor point on the dragon, spearing their own weapons into the scaly hide, grabbing hold of chinks in between the scales, or holding onto their comrades as the fell dragon itself began descending rapidly towards the earth below.

With a quaking impact; Grima crashed down. Luckily, and quite possibly with help from Naga, none of the Shepherd's had flown off the fell dragon as it made its descent. Robin and Chrom, both at the head had used their swords as anchors, and after making their landing, pulled them from the drake's skull and turned to their backs to make sure their allies were okay. Breathing a sigh of relief at not seeing any Shepherds thrown from the massive corpse, they turned back to the fell dragon himself.

Grima-Robin was breathing heavily and kneeling down on his dragon head as he gave a death glare to his failed vessel and the bothersome prince. "How dare you. HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU BUGS DEFY YOUR FATE! YOU!" he yelled, pointing to Chrom, "WERE SUPPOSED TO DIE! DIE BY YOUR MOST TRUSTED FRIEND! AND YOU," while pointing to Robin "...where does one even start with you?"

Chrom and Robin only returned Grima's rage with silence and glares. The two shared a look, and Robin nodded to Chrom. Chrom slowly made way for Grima, holding Falchion straight towards the god. "Your terror ends here, Grima. We won't let the future you want come to pass."  
At this, Grima scoffed. "Quite the sad, cliche little speech there, prince. So you're going to end me, then? That won't solve anything. I'll be back. And, of course, then, I'll win."  
"It's a temporary solution, but long enough for future generations to learn how to deal with you as well. We've all agreed to this. If it means an end to your terror for now... we'll take the risk." He raised his sword. "It ends now, Grima." But as Falchion was about to be brought down, a swift, surprising blow to the back of Chrom's neck sent him collapsing.

Catching a glimpse of a swish of a purple cloak gave Chrom a good idea of who had hit him. Robin stepped forward in front of Grima, and pulling out a red tome, created a wall of fire separating the two from everyone else on the dragon. Even Grima was surprised at Robin's unwarranted strike. "ROBIN!" Cordelia, Sumia, and the children of the prince and tactician came down on the head, though the heat from the wall of flames was too much for the pegasus to get near. "Robin! What are you doing?!" The yell from Cordelia caused Robin to pause, if only for a moment.

"I'm sorry, Cordelia. I decided long ago that this is what I'll do. I can't let Grima have control like this. Not again." Not even turning to face her, Robin raised his tome towards Grima, and electricity crackled into his hand. Grima, with a unlikely pleaing cry, yelled out, "Wait, Robin! You don't want to do this. If you strike me down, you yourself will also be lost. Your whole life. Your wife, your children!"  
Without wavering or hesitation, Robin pointed his hand down to Grima. "I've made peace with my decision. What is one life compared to thousands who would ultimately fall to your hand in the future? I have two beautiful daughters, both here, and back at the castle. I don't want what my daughters and the other children went through in that future to happen to anyone else."  
Knowing his own demise was imminent, all the fell dragon could muster was a scream in protest, but they fell on Robin's deaf ears. The superior in combat unleashed Thoron onto Grima, a vicious blue bolt of lightning tearing through him. In his eyes only, Robin witnessed not angry tears, but what looked like those of relief, or even joy, and saw the mouth on Grima… no, the Robin from the future, move to mouth a solemn "thank you".

Grima fell backwards, fully dead upon impact with the arcane missile, instead of simply sealed away. And, with his work done, Robin dispelled the fiery wall he erected, and turned to his friends. Only able to take a step before feeling his legs go weak, and falling swiftly towards the floor. At the moment before impact, he was caught, and, turning to see the face of his savior, the faces of his wife and daughters came into view, tears falling from their eyes.

"You idiot. You stupid,stupid idiot. Why? Why did you do that?" The desperate words fell from Cordelia's mouth as she pounded Robin's chest with a clenched fist over and over. Robin weakly reached his hand up and cupped her face in his charred hands.

"I'm sorry. I can't imagine your anger and sadness at this point. I couldn't tell any of you, 'cause I knew you would try to change my mind, and never let me attempt it besides. I battled with this choice for days." But Severa, not having it, soon interrupted him.

"But why you?! Why did it have to be you?! We were just getting along… beginning to actually be like a father and daughter! Why did it have to be you, dad?!" At the end, Severa finally broke down, Morgan quickly following suit, not able to even form a sentence. She was only able to cling her face to her father's chest.

"I'm sorry, girls. Like I said, I can't let anyone else go through what you two went through. I'm sorry. Sorry to leave you all like this. Before I… leave... I want every one of you to know. I love you… I love you all. You made my life, though I didn't realize earlier, the best life any man could have asked for." His breathing got rougher, more ragged, and increasingly difficult to get out. All the Shepherd were standing to the side, letting the family grieve. Soon enough, Robin started to disappear, Cordelia holding his head as close as she could to her heart, and Severa and Morgan hugged their parents, lasting until only three figures hugged each other, all crying over their father and husband's selfless act.


	11. Chapter 11: The Letter

Chapter 11: The Letter

"Cordelia? How're you holding up?" A concerned Sumia asked from outside of the bedroom door who held her redhead friend, and, up until recently, Robin. The grieving family had taken the loss hard. Naga had smiled upon the army, they tried to remember, considering the Shepherds had only made it out of the final battle with few injuries, all that could be healed easily. The only exception was Robin's sacrifice; he had tried his best to justify his action, but it didn't stop his wife and daughter's grieving in his absence. It was a solemn celebration as everyone shared memories of Robin, but Cordelia had decided to remain silent, with no one questioning her choice. After half a year had passed, and the public event of Robin's memorial, Cordelia had hidden away in her room, not wanting to talk to anyone aside from her family. "Cordelia...please."

After a moment of silence, the door creaked open, and Sumia saw her friend for the first time in days. Her eyes were bloodshot, as she had been crying non-stop since the memorial. She left the door open and shambled back towards the bed and simply fell down on it, a piece of parchment lying down next to her. Cordelia picked it up and stared down at it, once again, as she had a countless number of times prior. A new stream of tears began falling, moistening the paper that she clutched so tightly. Sumia sat down next her and placed a consoling arm around her friend. Cordelia, after so long, couldn't contain it anymore, and broke down in the woman's arms, leaning heavily into her. They stayed like this for what seemed like hours, Cordelia eventually sat up and handed the letter over to Sumia saying, "I found this in… his desk. He wrote it before the fight."

Sumia looked from her friend to the letter and gingerly took it, attempting to read despite the tear stains:

 _My family,_

 _At this point, the battle with Grima must have ended, and I hope with no casualties. But there's inevitably one cost; myself. If I had the chance to say it, I'm sorry for what I'm putting you all through. It was not the easiest choice. I questioned my decisions more times than I can remember._

 _To Morgan: You are a sweet child. You are so curious, always seeking the answers to the questions our world holds, and adventurous enough to go find them yourself. You are optimistic beyond what any of the Shepherds thought possible. If there is one thing I ask of you, it's to not lose that quality. I love you. To Severa; The first advice I want to pass along is that you are you, before anything else. Before you are our child, the child of the Shepherd's tactician, or of the genius pegasus commander, you are you. You are strong, capable, intelligent, all in your own amazing way. You have grown so much since I met you, and it fills me with pride I can not describe to know what an amazing woman, tactician, and warrior you've grown up to be. We had our arguments, but we grew because of it. To my dove: I woke up into a world with nothing but the clothes on my back. Chrom, Lissa, and Emmeryn gave me a all they could, but no matter how hard I tried to deny it, I still felt empty. Felt despair, that all I was good for was war, and that is not what I want to remember most. Then I met you. We got off to a rocky start, but getting to talk to you was the reason I woke up every day. Getting to spend at least a minute with you every day, made the day worthwhile. Getting to build up the courage to propose, to marry you, and to start a family with you were the best moments I can remember. Knowing how you filled my life with reason, it pains me to think this is how I pay you for it. I sacrifice my life, but you and the girls are left to endure the aftermath. Please know that I had many restless nights to arrive at this choice, even now, as I'm writing this at my desk while you sleep so soundly. Naga told us of the chance; that if I were to sacrifice myself, I could come back, and that is the choice I decided to make. I am sorry, and will understand the anger you will most likely have for me if I were to return. I love you, and I hope with all my being that this isn't our final goodbye._

 _Love, Your Snow Holly_

Sumia folded up the letter as she finished reading and looked to Cordelia. Cordelia, after some time, spoke up, her voice raspy after taking the letter back. "That idiot. He better come back. I am _not_ letting him off that easily."

Sumia said nothing else and hugged her friend even closer. They spent the day like this till the sun started to set. They only parted, after so many hours, due to the sound of a pounding feet down the hallway, followed by Severa and Morgan bursting into the room, both shouting, "MOM, _MOM!_ "

They spotted Sumia in the room, and both quickly bowed, with Severa blurting out, "Hi, Aunt Sumia, sorry for the intrusion, but Mom! You will not believe who Uncle Chrom and Aunt Lissa found in a field."


	12. Chapter 12: Children

Chapter 12: Children

"I mean, how can he treat me that way? Saying I haven't had enough discipline, enough maturity for my age. Gawds, he talks like any father would, at least one who doesn't care to actually listen to his daughter." Severa's rant from atop a crate, reclining in one of a multitude of tents. After another one of Severa's infamous shopping sprees, Robin had finally told his daughter no, and had confessed that his eldest daughter needed to stop acting like a child, and learn some self-discipline, to go through some hardship to learn life wasn't easy. Only after the words were out and he saw the look on Severa's face did Robin realize what he had said. Severa, of course, stormed away as a result.

"Now, honey, I realize you're mad, but I'm not the one you should talk to about this. I'm sure your father regrets what he said to you, you know." Cordelia spoke from behind a rack of axes. Severa, venting to Cordelia, didn't receive quite the response she was expecting, keeping her mother company while taking care of inventory for the night.

"Yeah, right! If he wanted to apologize, he would've done it right after he said it!" Severa made an obviously pained look, quietly saying, "I bet he wishes I wasn't his at all. I bet he wishes it was just Morgan. The child that he relates to more."  
At this, Cordelia put down the scroll she was perusing and turned to Severa with an indignant look. "Now, you know that's not true. Your father and I love the both of you with all our hearts."

"Oh, yeah. 'Cause he's doing one hell of a good job of showing it!" Severa huffed and turned around on the crate.

Cordelia sighed, hoisted herself onto the crate and sat down next to her daughter. "I assume it was the same in the future, but did my future self ever say what happened on the day you were born?"

Severa remained quiet for a few minutes before quietly speaking up. "If you did, I can't remember. You both left when we were still pretty young."

"Well, I'm sure it'll help you realize I'm telling you the truth. I don't remember most of it, but Sumia and Chrom filled me in."

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"Robin, you need to calm down. Take some deep breaths"  
"Chrom, I can't calm down right now. My wife is giving birth in there. I'm nothing but nerves here!" A scream from inside the hospital wing caused Robin to wince as he frantically resumed his pacing, practically burning a mark into the floor. Chrom thought to comment on this, but he was the same way, maybe even worse, during Lucina's birth.

It was just breaking dawn on January 21st when Cordelia woke very quickly, immediately shaking Robin awake, stating very urgently that she believed she was going into labour. Mere hours later, Robin was pacing outside of the hospital wing as Lissa, Maribelle, Libra, and Sumia stayed with Cordelia to help with the delivery. Robin believed that the comfort of a friend would be best to help Cordelia through the delivery… especially after more than a few accusations were thrown at Robin, claiming this was all his fault.

"Blue's right, Bubbles. You gotta relax. The kid won't want ta see their daddy all worked up like you are." Gaius had tagged along with Maribelle, saying he just happened to be in the area when the call came in and had nothing better to do. The bed head and lack of dress were clear signs there was more to the story. "I got some pudding, or maybe a couple a sugar cubes for ya here."

A death glare from Robin was enough to silence the candy thief, as he stuck a sucker in his mouth and sat back on the bench nonchalantly. "Just a suggestion, yeesh."  
Hardly half an hour later, Lissa walked out of the door, and was immediately cornered by Robin as he bombarded her with questions. "Is Cordelia okay?! Is the baby ok?! Did anything happen?! Was it a successful delivery?! Is it a boy or a girl?!"

Lissa was startled, but tried as best she could to quickly calm him down. "Robin, breathe. She's fine, and the baby is fine. We wanted to wait a minute before letting you in. They're pretty tired, but you can go in and see them now."

Not wanting to wait any longer, Robin sprinted into the ward, his coat flying behind him. His attention quickly focused in on Cordelia, barely conscious on her bed, and Sumia holding and looking down at a baby in a swad of towels. Robin cautiously walked towards the three, completely at a loss for what to do or say. He sat down on the other side of the bed and took Cordelia's hand in his.

The new mother slowly opened her eyes and turned her head to the equally new father. "Oh, hi, honey," she managed to voice, giving off an exhausted tone. "It's a girl, Robin. We have a daughter." She laughed weakly, and slipped back asleep. Robin smiled at his wife and lovingly caressed the back of her hand with his thumb. Sumia stood up and carefully walked over to Robin.

"Do you want to hold her, Robin?" Sumia motioned towards the bundle in her hands. Robin silently nodded and stood up as well, holding his arms out eagerly for his daughter. The midwife placed his child into his arms and stepped back, giving the father ample space to comprehend the miracle he held. Robin slowly rocked the baby back and forth in his arms before asking, "So, what did Cordelia decide for a name?"

"Oh, right. She wanted me to let you know that after some thought, she decided on going with Severa"

"Severa, huh? Severa." Sumia soon noticed tears were streaming down Robin's eyes as he gazed lovingly upon his daughter. "I have a daughter. I have a beautiful daughter named Severa. Severa, daddy loves you. He loves you so much." Robin hugged her close as tears kept coming down. The infant and mother slept peacefully while Sumia watched for a minute before leaving the room to pass along the information to the two waiting outside.

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"Severa? Are you in here?" Robin pushed aside the flap to the storage tent and saw Cordelia and Severa sitting on a crate. Severa was looking down at her hands when Robin came in. Cordelia looked up at Robin and motioned her head towards their daughter as she carefully got up, and exited the tent.

"Severa. I'm sorry. What I said… I wasn't thinking rationally. I'm so sorry. You were right… I'm not a good fath-" Severa jumped up and hugged her father tightly, cutting him off.

"You're a good dad. I'm sorry for calling you names. Insulting you to your face, and a little behind your back." She looked up at him "Do you think, tomorrow, you could teach me a bit on strategy and tactics, like you do with Morgan?"

"Yeah, of course, honey. We can start as soon as you want." He hugged his daughter closer. "Wait, what was that about behind my back?"

"...Just a few comments. Nothing bad" The answer didn't really ease Robin's suspicions, but he took it anyway. The two hugged for a few more minutes before separating and heading towards the exit of the tent.

"Morgan, NO! Put the tome down, honey! Please!" Cordelia's voice rose from the families tent. Robin and Severa smiled at the outburst. Not a dull moment for their family.


	13. Chapter 13: Steam

Chapter 13: Steam

Cordelia stood under the hot, perpetual stream of water, doing what anyone would normally do in the shower, and contemplated her life's events. Chief among her thoughts was her desire to ask Robin to celebrate a special milestone in their relationship. This wasn't the big "engagement" milestone, but a few steps under it. Cordelia had asked Robin to come over later that day, and she was going to ask him if they were ready to move in together. Mentally preparing herself for the soon-to-come conservation, she absentmindedly ran her hands through her crimson hair, getting the last of the shampoo out of it. Turning off the water, she stepped out onto the cold bathroom tile. Drying off her hair, she stepped out of the bathroom heading towards her room in her small apartment, but stopped mid-stride as she caught movement out of the corner of her eye.

She turned her head to see only Robin, standing awkwardly just a few feet away and staring wide eyed and slack-jawed at his significant other. _Weird_ , Cordelia thought, he _isn't_ _supposed to arrive for another half-hour_. There was a quiet moment of blank stares between the two, both caught in motion, before Cordelia came to the realization that she was not covered, and immediately screamed and ran into her room, slamming the door behind her, shouting, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU _DOING_ HERE?!"

Robin ran over to the bedroom door with haste, hoping to fix the situation as quickly as he could. "Cordelia, I'm sorry, I-I swear I didn't see anything!"  
Cordelia blushed and instinctively moved the towel to hide her chest even though Robin couldn't see her from the door she pressed her back up against. "Well, thanks a lot, Robin!" she replied, a bit harsher than she'd intended. "That makes me feel so much better!"

Robin smacked his head in an open palm and brought it down to pinch the bridge of his nose. "No, that's not what I meant, I... there was… steam… a lot of it, you know? I couldn't see anything." There was another long pause, and Robin began to feel worried from the silence. "If it'll make you feel better I could… umm… oh! I could get naked and you could see me, then we would be even… right?"

After hearing only rustlng from the other side of the door Robin stepped backward as the door creaked opened, and Cordelia walked out in her lounge wear and crossed her arms before Robin, wearing something of an unamused expression. "And how would that be better? I don't want to see you naked, really."

Robin rubbed the back of his head, his face turning reddish from embarrassment, and looked down at his feet. "Right… didn't think that one through, I guess."

She gave Robin a stern look before continuing her berating. "You still didn't tell me why you're here so early. And how did you even get in anyway?"

Robin glanced up, but, not daring to let his eyes rest on her at the moment, kept darting his view around, hoping to avoid eye contact. "Your earlier text sounded pretty urgent, so I thought there was an issue you really wanted to cover as soon as possible, and I rushed over. That, and I remembered where you hide your spare key, so I just used that to get in. Sorry."

"Well, just so we're clear, I'm going to stay mad at you for this for a couple weeks, got it?" she huffed, turning her back to the befuddled man.

Robin sighed and stepped towards her, simply placing his chin on her shoulder and looking over to her with a faux pout on his face.

Cordelia looked over, but turned her head back away from the whimpering man upon seeing the pout on his face. "No, not this time. Your puppy-dog eyes will not get you out of this, mister."  
"You sure? 'Cause my eyes are reeeeeally saying I'm sorry." He blinked his eyes quickly, like a child trying to get a toy they really want from their parents.

Cordelia tried to resist, and did an excellent job of doing so as long as she could, but she succumbed soon enough, and once again began awarding a victory for Robin. "Alright, fine. Sit down in the kitchen, and we can talk. I was thinking that, just maybe, it was time we moved in together. But we'll have seperate rooms! No peeping!"

 **A/N: How's it going everyone, the lord of the dread lands is back with a couple more chapters for the show. Been a bit hectic and will continue to be hectic at my area of employment as quite a few, of our already small numbered, employees have quit without notice. Sorry about that, but I will update as much as I can. Shoutout to warrior for their positive reviews on past chapters. You are awesome friendo**


	14. Chapter 14: Stood Up

Chapter 14: Stood Up

"That poor girl. Her date clearly stood her up," Stahl, a line cook at the Ylisse Feast restaurant, spoke up as he looked out from the kitchen to the dining area. As the sun was beginning to set, the restaurant was getting near its closing time, and only one patron remained in the restaurant. She had been there for the last four hours; if anything, her optimism and determination were admirable, having only ordering a drink and salad. She was clearly waiting on someone else to join her, but was left to pick at her food, alone, save for the restaurant staff.

Robin looked up from the sink, in the same direction as Stahl, as he was finishing the last of the day's dishes. "Yeah, what jerk does that to someone?" Just from the looks of it, the girl went the extra mile in getting herself ready for the rendezvous. Her crimson hair was done up in a side braid and pulled over her shoulder, with a small amount of blush and lip gloss on her face, and quite the expensive-looking blue sundress.  
Stahl heaved an audible sigh. "Should… one of us go and tell her it's nearly closing time?"

Robin dried his hands off on a nearby dirty wash rag and walked over to the counter, leaning over it on one elbow and staring out at the lonesome girl. He sighed and bent down to grab two plates of display pies from under the counter before walking out to the table. As Robin got closer, he noticed that the girl saw him coming and tried to discreetly wipe her eyes before he got close enough to see her tears.

As he went up to her, the girl spoke up. "It'll be just a little bit longer. I'm sure he's out in the parking lot right now." Robin could hear the crack in her voice and silently cursed the asshole that didn't show up. He set one of the chocolate pies in front of her, and the other one across the table.

She looked down at the pie and then back up to the server. "I… I didn't order any dessert."

Robin sat down in the chair across from her. "It's on the house, ma'am." He grabbed the fork and started digging into his own pie. "I'm here to also tell you that the restaurant is closing soon… I'm sorry, but I don't think who you are expecting… will be showing up."

The girl stared down at her plate, quiet for a moment or two, and soon broke down, her head and arms fell down onto the table with a sudden thud. The sympathetic busboy quickly stood up and walked hurriedly over to her side. Just at that moment, awkwardly realizing there was not much that he could do except lightly and reassuringly pat her on the back. She raised her head up and turned to Robin, tears visibly brimming in the corner of her eyes. "Be honest," she choked out. "Do you think I'm ugly? Am I not pretty enough? Is there something about me that would scare someone off?" She continued under her breath, "First date in years, and he doesn't even show up."  
This caught Robin off guard. He stammered, "Well, umm... I mean, you certainly are hot. I-I mean, not hot as in like, 'oh, wow look at her, I'd like some of that.' No, wait I didn't mean to say it like that, because you are _definitely_ attractive. N-not in a way that I'm coming onto you. You certainly are up there, like, above the average. Like..." Needing to stop himself, and hide his own sudden embarrassment, Robin grabbed his pie plate and took a huge bite.

Cordelia just stared at him for a brief moment of unbelieving silence before she brought her hand up to her mouth to stifle a laugh, though failing for the most part. Practically doubling over at seeing Robin's chocolate-covered face, her laughing increasing exponentially with the sight. "I'm… haha, I'm sorry. Your reaction was just too good." She took a few more minutes to compose herself and regain her breathing. She stood up and reached for her purse on an adjacent chair, still wearing a surprising grin. "Haha, I do have to thank you, though. I wasn't expecting to be so quickly cheered up from this, but your response was just too funny."

Robin stood still, trying to comprehend what he'd done, and while watching the girl pack up her items, admitted, "Well, I'm glad my awkwardness was able to help. And I'm sorry again your date never showed up."

"Well, I can look on the bright side, at least: I just dodged a bullet with a terrible person, I'm sure. And, on top of that, I met someone nice enough to try and cheer me up. Oh, and by the way, I'm Cordelia," she said as she held a friendly hand out to the white-haired comedian.

"I'm Robin. The pleasure's all mine. Glad to help someone in distress," he added, the last line heavy with false gusto as he shook her hand.

Cordelia giggled as she turned to leave. "Well, at least I know where I can find you. I hope to see you later, Robin."

Robin looked down at the table and then realized one of the pies had been left untouched "Wait! Wouldn't you like to take your dessert with you"  
Cordelia brought her finger up to her chin in thought and said "Well...why don't we save it for my next visit. Judging by how much you've eaten I assume it's good so that's a good reason for me to come back isn't it." She waved with a smile to him as she exited the restaurant.

Robin waved to her as well, pie still coating his awkward expression, and stood staring at the door she exited through long after she'd departed. Confused on why his face felt so warm, his heart was beating so fast, and why he wanted, more than anything right now, to see her again soon.


	15. Chapter 15: Choices

A/N: These next two won't exactly be fluff and more a little on the sadder parts with a little changes

Chapter 15: Choices

Robin stood in solitude out in an open field, feeling the wind blow through his hair. He needed his alone-time after the events that transpired. The group had lost the Fire Emblem… all because Validar had control over Robin's every move. Everyone in the Shepherds had tried to reassure Robin that he wasn't at fault. He didn't believe a word of it, however, and felt he had to excuse himself from the camp, to think over everything.

He heard the rustling of grass from behind him, but didn't turn. It was only when the arrival spoke up that Robin turned.

"Beg pardon, Robin. Might I have a word?" It was Lucina, and she looked as confused and lost as Robin felt.

Curious, Robin faced Lucina. "...Oh, Lucina. What is it?"

She fidgeted with a stray strand of her hair as she spoke. "It's about my father. I have memories of him, you know. From when I was little. Before he… died." Robin merely nodded his response to her as she continued.

"He was courageous, and kind, and everyone spoke fondly of him. People say he was brave right up until the very end. I always yearned to know him better. And now that I do... I can see that the world will be robbed of a very great man… I won't allow that to happen."

Again, Robin nodded. "I understand. You love him… we all do."

Lucina looked as if she were on the verge of tears. "Uncle Robin, I... Please, forgive me…" and with that she raised the Parallel Falchion up at Robin's neck. Robin instinctively stepped back, and eyed the sword warily.

Lucina cried out in anguish and regret, "Stay where you are, Robin! I have no choice. I must kill you. No matter how much it pains me to do so. But, in the future… you are my father's murderer."

Robin raised his hands in defense, alarmed but not fearful. "Look, I understand where these feelings are coming from, Lucina, but that's insane! Why would I kill Chrom?"

Lucina never lowered her sword an inch as she spoke to Robin. "I was not certain myself, until now... I knew he had been killed by his closest friend. Having witnessed your bond with him, I doubted it could be so... but today's events make it clear. You are at Validar's mercy. I suspect it's he who forces you to take my father's life, and very soon…"

Tears were now flowing down from her eyes as she stared over at the man she called family for most of her childhood. "If my father is right, then we can change our fates. If this dark future is to be averted, sacrifices must be made. I am truly sorry, uncle! I know this is murder, I... I know it, but…" She choked out her last few words, and only then was Falchion lowered a little.

Robin lowered his hands gingerly as he stared down at his feet. If it were true that he would be the one to end Chrom's life, then it will just cause the same horrendous future again, and again, and again. It was not ideal… he would be making his wife a widow, and his two daughters fatherless. But in the grand scheme, one small loss is well worth sparing the lives of so many other families and loved ones from the pain that Validar and the Grimleal would cause.

With his head still hung low, he spoke to Lucina "...Very well. I forfeit my life."

Lucina's head lifted in surprise, not expecting Robin's words, as she believed that he would put up a fight for his life, instead of accepting his necessary sacrifice. She hesitated, pondering the situation for a minute, and then brought Falchion back up to its earlier position. Lucina was only able to utter "Godspeed, Uncle Robin."

Robin squeezed his eyes shut as he waited for the blade to meet its mark, but all he heard was a sharp clang and then the sounds of struggling. Opening his eyes, he saw Falchion very close to his body, but it was held back by a sword and a lance being wielded by his two daughters.

Surprised as the two were, Robin and Lucina's attention was caught by a commanding voice from behind them. "That's enough!"

The two figures approaching from the rear made both Robin and Lucina avert their eyes. Cordelia and Chrom, both with disappointed looks on their faces, stepped before them. Morgan lowered her weapon and ran to hug her father, while Severa never took her eyes off of Lucina and Falchion.

Lucina spoke up first. "Father, we just wanted to-" but a harsh look from Chrom silenced her protest.

Chrom turned to Robin, saying, "You are my closest friend, and I trust you. We will speak on this tomorrow. Lucina," the exalt barked as he turned to face his daughter, "we will talk on this now." He motioned with his finger, and Lucina obediently followed behind, all the while avoiding the piercing gazes from Severa and Cordelia.

Robin's eyes never left the ground, but he could feel the disapproving eyes of his wife and eldest daughter, and the worried gaze from his youngest. Moments of silence dragged on between the four for what felt like hours, until Cordelia said only one word to command Robin to explain. "Well?"

Robin did not immediately speak up about his actions, so Cordelia stepped out in front of him with her arms crossed and tapping her foot. Robin looked up, but quickly removed his gaze, returning it to the unjudging ground. After a few more minutes, Robin took a deep breath and said, "Isn't it obvious?"

It was that comment that caused Cordelia to snap. "NO, IT'S NOT! HOW DO YOU THINK I FEEL?! HOW YOUR FAMILY FEELS?! COMING OUT TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE OKAY, AND SEEING LUCINA POINTING HER SWORD AT YOU, WITH YOU JUST ACCEPTING IT?!"

Each word was enough to make Robin wince, but he returned back, now just as upset. "WERE YOU EVEN WATCHING AT PLEGIA?! VALIDAR CONTROLLED ME AND MADE ME DO HIS BIDDING WITHOUT A PROBLEM! WHAT IF HE HAD ME HARM ANY OF YOU?! HE PROBABLY WILL, AND IT WILL JUST TURN INTO OUR CHILDREN'S FUTURE!"

Severa took her turn, butting into the heated argument. "But we've already proven that the future can change! And so we reach a setback, and you just decide, 'Welp time to off myself'!?"

The family was angrily yelling back and forth, though before long, it was a cry from Morgan that ended it. "Please, stop! Please, stop yelling." The youngest was kneeling down in the field with her hands over her ears, a pained expression evident on her face.

Severa quickly moved over to her sister, taking on the protective older sibling role, and glaring up at her parents. She hugged her sister, whispering comforting words through the cracks of Morgan's fingers. Severa then stood up with her sister and told her parents, "We'll go back to camp, now. It's been a long day, and we're tired."

Their two daughters walked off back to camp. Robin returned his gaze to the ground in shame. Cordelia, staring at Robin's bowed head, softened her glare considerably. "You are not a pawn to Grima, or to Validar. You are Robin, and my husband, first and foremost."

With that, she walked off, following Severa and Morgan, looking back to her ashamed husband only once, just catching the tears streaming down from Robin's eyes.


	16. Chapter 16: Bittersweet

Chapter 16: Bittersweet

Validar looked up with disdain at his son. A horrid son, one who would defy his

destiny. "Robin, why insist on these games? You only delay the inevitable. And besides, the alternative? Have you considered what may happen should I fall? These followers of Naga will spurn you now that they've learned what you are. Kill me, and incur the wrath of the Grimleal as well... Would you truly choose to be so utterly alone?"

Robin only looked down at the man he was supposed to call his father, not even giving the man the satisfaction of an answer. Validar took the silence and continued with his rant to his disgraceful child. "Humans are weak, pathetic creatures... Your 'bonds' with them will only bind you. You are destined for a greater purpose! The GREATEST purpose! You are to be a GOD!"

Robin had had enough and raised his hand to strike down Validar. "...Not your god—not today."

But it wasn't Robin who dealt the finishing blow, as a sword from behind his treacherous father pierced Validar. Everyone held a look of shock, Validar especially, as he turned his head slowly to look upon whoever dealt the blow. "Lord Grima… why?" Validar coughed up blood as the sword retracted from his body with a sickening shlick and then arced through the air, returning to the body to cut off the Sorcerer's head. The now detached head was sent flying with the look of shock and betrayal still etched into the corpse's face.

The culprit used the beheaded body's robes to clean off the sword that committed the act, then stepped forward into view of all in attendance, lowering the hood of their grimleal cloak: revealing a man that looked like an older Robin, smiling and speaking as he sheathed his now-clean blade. "Finally! I've been waiting to do that for ages. Such a kiss-ass and such a headache," he laughed as he finished his gloating.

Chrom hoisted Falchion up at the man. "Validar called you 'Lord Grima.' Explain, now!"

The supposed Lord Grima only looked at Chrom with signs of annoyance and bloodlust, responding by raising his head up to look down his nose at the exalt. "It's as he says. I am Grima, god of destruction. Or is that still too hard for the baby prince to wrap his thick head around?"

Grima raised his hand and a bolt of black lightning shot towards Chrom, but Robin anticipated the attack and his own bolt met Grima's, pushing Robin and Chrom back from the combination of energy. Robin yelled towards his doppelganger. "Explain yourself! Who are you? Who are you really?!"

Grima grabbed the bridge of his nose in obvious exasperation. "Gods, I forgot how daft we were. I've already explained that I am Grima. To be more precise, I am also you.The you from the future who killed Chrom and attained godhood."

"Father?" A shaky, almost silent voice spoke up behind Robin, and a distraught Severa stepped forward, looking up at the future Robin. "But… they said you died along with Chrom. How… how can you… be here?"

Grima looked down at Severa with a soft expression on his face as he stepped forward. Chrom and Robin readied their blades, but Severa still stood frozen with shock. Grima kept walking forward with their arms spread wide open. "My precious child. They weren't wrong. Robin did die that night in this very same tower. I took his place, but that doesn't mean I'm not your father. Just a stronger one." Grima kept getting closer and closer. Severa sunk down to her knees, holding her shoulders as she shook.

Robin ran to his daughter's side, glaring up at Grima, but he never stopped his advance. "Think on it. We can all rule this land as a family. Together again. Think about it, my chil-"

Grima never finished his sentence as a javelin that sailed past his head interrupted his monologue. The spear only inflicted a minor wound, but still took a bit of his ear with it. Grima looked with murderous intent at whoever dared to interrupt him and his eyes fell on a furious Cordelia as she stepped in front of her future daughter. Morgan ran up beside her mother to her sister's side. Cordelia yelled out, "Don't you dare lay a hand on my daughters or my husband, you dastard!"

Grima took in a deep breath and put his previous smile back on his face as he turned to Cordelia. "Oh, my sweet dove. How many nights have passed wondering when I could see you again. I've missed you so."

"SHUT IT!" Cordelia shouted as she held her lance up before her. "Drop the act, deceiver. You are not, nor have you ever been, Robin. You're only using his face and his bonds to manipulate others for your advantage. I won't fall for it!"

Grima's smile immediately turned to a snarl as his gaze darkened at the knight. "You know, the you from my time was so much more fun. She begged and begged for me to let Robin go, and she was foolish enough to believe it the first few times I pretended to be him. Then she just became an empty shell; not giving me any reaction, just looking on with a dead look in her eyes." His snarl transformed into a malicious smile. "As you've already seen, I like to personally dispose of belongings that no longer hold any use to me."

A blast of lightning struck Grima in the chest and pushed him back, leaving a smoking hole in the clothing. Robin stepped forward, shielding his family from Grima's gaze and returning a murderous glare of his own. "It's over, Grima. I rejected my destiny. You won't take control here."

Grima scoffed at the comment, turning his back and stepping towards the dragon-motif table. A dark purple aura appearing around him as he approached it. "You were supposed to choose godhood over these pathetic sacks of flesh. No matter. If you reject the sacrifice laid out for you at the Dragon's Table, then I shall take it in your place."

Robin's eyes went wide with the realization of what was about to transpire, turning towards the remaining Shepherds. "EVERYONE OUT, NOW!!"

Grima raised his arms as clouds swirled around in the sky above the temple. Bolts of lightning struck down around the god incarnate. "Myeh heh ha ha ha! The fell dragon and I are one! And though my journey through time has diminished my power… the life force here shall renew me!"


	17. Chapter 17: Fault

One more little sad fluff and then onto family and lovey fluff

Chapter 17: Not Your Fault

Chrom, Robin, and Lucina led the Shepherd's in their escape from the Plegian Castle as Validar tricked them into coming to the castle for a deal. But the Plegian king only wanted the Fire Emblem for himself, and his plans to resurrect Grima. The Shepherds were forced to fight their way out of the castle, and were just about near the exit.

Chrom waved towards the army to keep following him "Alright everyone, we're nearly there. Just keep goi-Hnrgh" A blast from behind cut Chrom off as he was sent flying into his daughter.

Lucina supported Chrom, but the blast left the lord incapacitated. Validar confidently stepped towards the head of the group "Run all you like—you can't escape fate. Don't you know that?" He held out his arm and unfurled his slender fingers "The Fire Emblem. Give it freely, or it will be taken."

Chrom had enough strength that he was able to spit out "Just try it!" However Validar's expression had not changed, even after Chrom's response. Instead his arm merely moved over to the tactician "Heh heh... I won't need to do anything... _Robin_!"

Robin wanted to spit a cold response to his 'father', but found his mouth wouldn't open. Or any part of his body for that matter. In fact his vision became blurred and tinted red. Even feeling as his conscious was being shoved back and forced to ride as a passenger.

His whole body went limp, and it brought the concern of his wife who rushed to the side of her beloved "Robin? Robin are you ok?" Robin wanted nothing more than to shout out, and reassure his wife. But his body remained immobile and silent.

Validar smiled at knowing his success. He raised his hand behind the main group and more Risen appeared around the lagging Shepherds, and then points his hand back to the lord "Robin...be a good boy and get the Fire Emblem for your father"

Robin raised his arm and with an unknown amount of strength, was able to throw Cordelia off his body. The pegasus knight hitting the wall with a dull thud, but still conscious. Robin turned and walked towards the two lords. The controlled tactician pulled out a yellow tome and cast a bolt that sent Lucina flying away from her father. After, Robin wrestled the shield from Chrom. All the while Robin was screaming from inside his own body.

Robin turned to walk back to Validar with his gift, but felt a tug on his leg as Chrom held onto his friend "Robin. Please. Fight It. You're Strong. Fight it"; But Robin only stared down at Chrom with emotionless eyes. Without any word, Robin raised his other leg and kicked the lord in the face, knocking him out.

Validar clapped as he stepped towards his son, and took the Fire Emblem in his hands "Good work Robin. You've proven your use quite well. Now kill that pestering lord" Validar gave one last command, as he stepped into a magical gate, and disappeared.

Robin unsheathed his sword, and stepped towards the unconscious Chrom. All of the Shepherds were preoccupied with the Risen and had no clue of the danger their leader was in. Robin. Internally Robin was trying to break free from his internal restraints as he was unable to even look away from his soon to be murder of his closest friend. Robin thrusted the sword, but at the last second, someone stepped in between the sword and Chrom. It was Cordelia, the sword protruding from the side of her abdomen. Using all of her strength on holding and pushing the blade from going any deeper, cutting into the palms of her hands.

Robin stared wide eyed in horror at seeing his wife stabbed, and bleeding, but even more so it was done by his own hand. The shock from the view was able to free Robin from whatever spell he was under as he dropped the sword, and held onto Cordelia "Oh gods Cordelia. Oh gods I'm so sorry. I didn't...i had no control." Was putting pressure on the wound as he frantically looked around the battlefield "LISSA! LIBRA! ANYONE! I NEED HELP!"

Cordelia fell to her knees as Robin kept a strong hold on her. Frantically trying to do his best to keep the wound from bleeding "It's ok cordelia! You're going to be ok! I'm so sorry!"

A reassuring hand slowly reached up and cupped Robin's cheek. His eyes moved up from the wound to stare into the burgundy eyes of his wife. Expecting to see a pained and scared expression on her face, instead was more surprised by a calm and comforting look. Cordelia spoke up as she pulled Robin's head close to hers and touched her forehead to his "It's ok, Robin. I know. It's not your fault"

And with that Cordelia lost consciousness and her hand fell limp to her side, leaving a bloody print on Robin's cheek, as he stared horrified down at Cordelia. Out of the corner of his eye seeing two figures on horseback riding towards them, staves at the ready.


	18. Chapter 18: Training

Chapter 18: Training

"Now watch this! BLAZING BLADE OF DOOM!" With an unneeded amount of force, Owain slashed out at the training dummy he was fighting against. "And now the finisher! STEEL OF THE RADIANT DAWN!" From this outburst, Owain jumped into the air, bringing the sword down in an arc onto the dummy's head. Even with a training sword, it was more than sufficient force to break through the dummy's wooden head.

Owain sheathed his sword with an overconfident smirk. "You see that? Then you best beware the power of…" he began while bringing his hand up to partially hide his face "OWAIN DARK!"

He exclaimed this to an exasperated and bewildered audience consisting of Robin, Cordelia, Lucina, Severa, Inigo, and the legitimately amused Morgan and Cynthia who were applauding Owain's theatrics. "Wow, Owain, that was incredible! You have to teach me those cool moves of yours." Morgan ran up to the performer, who had an obvious air of satisfaction about him.

Owain kept his hand up over his face, mainly to hide his gleeful smile. "I'm sorry young Morgan, but these moves are only for those with aching royal blood like my own!"

Robin could only pinch his nose, thinking to himself, _'Why am I a part of this again?'_

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"Pleeeeeease Robin? Please do us this one favor?" Lissa was practically on her knees, grabbing onto the hem of Robin's cloak. The man himself was practically cornered by Lissa, Olivia, and Sumia, who had asked if he would be the one to train their future kids.

Robin frantically waved his hands back and forth in disagreeance. "I really don't think I'm the right one for this! Besides, won't their respective fathers be better trainers for them?"

Sumia sighed, putting her begging on a temporary hold. "Chrom tries, he really does, but the life of an exalt can keep him quite busy."  
Olivia fidgeted with silk of her apparel. "Henry isn't exactly the swordsman that Inigo is..."

Lissa simply pouted. "It's the same with Donnel. He tries his best, I know, but….Owain can be a bit much."

Robin was not sure how he could be the trainer they were looking for. "What about Frederick? He's trained in lance and sword, and is as good a teacher as any."

It was that comment that made all girls look to the side with concerned looks on their faces, but Sumia spoke up among them. "Well… you know how Frederick is. We just want something a tad lighter than what Frederick will definitely give them."

"Well, of course we would love to help," Cordelia said as she and Severa walked in from down the hall, the latter holding onto her baby self.

Lissa gasped and ran over to hold onto Cordelia's hands. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, Cordelia!"  
The appreciated woman smiled down at the young princess. "It's no problem at all, Lady Lissa. I would be happy to train Cynthia and Morgan in their lancework, and it's about time Severa got to her tactician training as well."

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Robin soon got guilt tripped into training the children, though he thought it would be a great experience for all involved. For starters, he had them display their innate abilities on the training dummy. Owain was the last one to do so, but he had enough background knowledge. "Oh come on, Owain, I'm sure I can learn!" Morgan whined to the overdramatic swordsman.

Robin tried to ignore it and retain the group's full attention. "Okay, gather around, everyone."  
"Sorry, but my aching blood is the only reason I can use these moves," Owain bragged to the other children, not even listening to his instructor.

"I believe I've gotten a good look at each of your techniques," Robin continued, trying to grab the group's attention from Owain.  
"Oh please, we share the same blood. You should tell us in the name of justice!" Cynthia interjected on Owain's logic, still oblivious to Robin's comments.

Robin tried to ignore this and continue with his analysis. "Now, for Inigo, yo-"

"Maybe I can use the same techniques with my lance?" Cynthia continued.

After this third interruption, Robin lost all his patience. "Will you three pay attention!" and knocked them all in turn atop their heads with his tome. At this, they all obediently sat cross-legged on the floor, left rubbing their heads.

Robin took a long pause to collect himself before turning to Inigo. "Inigo, you do have a great amount of skill in your techniques, but they aren't particularly defensive. You leave too many holes open in your strikes for an enemy to get under your guard.

"Owain and Cynthia, you both have potential, but you also hold great emphasis on your theatrics. Cynthia, like Inigo, you have excellent speed in your attacks. As a pegasus knight, you can easily use that to your advantage. Owain, you yourself are well balanced, but are you sure the sword is your chosen path? You have much potential in any form of weaponry if you truly apply yourself" Robin stood in front of the first cousins, kneeling down and putting his hands on their shoulders. "I know you both want a second chance at the childhood you lost. I'm not asking you to fully change. Just... moderate yourselves."

Content in his appraisal, Robin moved on to his daughters, and Severa puffed out her chest in anticipation for the praise she would surely get from her father. "Severa, you are quite reckless. I can say this from what I've seen from training, but also from actual battle. You rush into a fight in a full, furious offense. It's admirable, but dangerous. It worries me as both a strategist, and more importantly, as your father. Hang back, and rely on your allies to watch your back. You're not alone. Not anymore."

The children all looked to each other. Robin wasn't wrong in his appraisal about their habits. In fact, having them pointed out was the first time they realized how they acted in battle. However, it was also his pointing out of their past situations that really set in.

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A fair bit of time had passed, and in an astral plane, far from Ylisse, resided three of the tactician's past students. Inigo, or Lazlow, as he is known in this world, was sparring with his liege, Xander, as well as the other Nohrian royalty, with each of their retainers present, including Corrin. After Lazlow had landed a successful blow and ended the mock fight, he received praise from the deep voice of Nohr's crowned prince. "You know, Lazlow, your fighting style is unique, even among the Hoshidan and Nohr troops. I have pondered this for awhile, but who taught you?"  
Lazlow bashfully rubbed the back of his head. "Well, milord, I was initially self-taught, though really I-"  
Selena walked up and bowed to the dark prince, interrupting Lazlow's sentence with a mixture of respect and pride. "But it was ultimately my father who really helped hone my skills, as well as those of Lazlow, and even Odin, too."

Camilla walked next to her retainer, evidently pleased. "Oh, my darling Selena, I do believe this is the first I've ever even heard you mention your family. You even seemed to glow when mentioning this father of yours."

Selena blushed and looked away, embarrassed. "Well, he's not around anymore. Besides…" her gaze turned towards Caeldori and Corrin, who seemed to have started talking and walking off with each other towards their own teaching session. "I do tend to see my mother and father, sometimes, here in this army."

A/N: Took a bit of inspiration, mainly from Owain's victory scene from Warriors


	19. Chapter 19: Cold Outside

Chapter 19: Cold Outside

Cordelia woke up feeling a strong sense of safety and comfort. She sat up from her lying position and felt a heavy blanket fall off from her frame. She groggily wiped the sleep from her eyes as she looked off to her side and saw Robin, who had fallen asleep on the couch beside her. The menu of the DVD they were watching remained static on the nearby TV screen. Grabbing the remote, she turned off the television and stretched. Grabbing her phone from her pocket and glancing down at it to check the time, she realized it was getting pretty late and knew she should head back to her place. As she made her way towards the door, she grabbed her bag and made her way out of Robin's apartment, ready to leave. However, as she passed by the porch window, she noticed what would make for a huge problem with her leaving.

Robin woke up to Cordelia shaking him awake. "Mmmm, five more minutes, please," Robin mumbled, and with that he rolled over onto his side, facing away from Cordelia.

Cordelia pouted and walked into the apartment's kitchen, grabbed a plastic bag, and made sure to tie it closed, filled with air. She walked back over to Robin and, with a quick slap, she popped the bag and got Robin to sit upright extremely quick. He looked over, shocked and wide-eyed, and saw Cordelia tapping her foot. "Is Sleeping Beauty awake now?" Cordelia asked sarcastically.

Robin closed and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "Alright, what's wrong?"

Cordelia just pointed to the window and Robin immediately saw for himself what the problem was; it had started snowing. "Well, that's not so bad. Here, I'll go dig out your car."

"I don't think you'll make good progress on that," the redhead retorted. Robin, confused at this, stood up and walked over to the window. He saw it wasn't actually a light fall, but a full-on blizzard. Robin put his hands behind his head in contemplation and thought over the situation. The parking lot was visible from his window, and he was certain that if he even tried to dig out Cordelia's car then the cold, white flurry would quickly replace what was shoveled away. In short, it would be useless to even attempt.

"Well... looks like the best option for me is to just stay here for the night, at least until this weather blows over." Robin closed the blinds and sat back down on the couch.

Cordelia sat down next to him and laid her head down on his shoulder. "Oh, Sumia is going to have a field day on this."

Robin laughed at this. "Better give her all the juicy details, then."  
Cordelia giggled. "Yes, we slept in the same bed, and after a few sweet good nights, we fell asleep. So risque!"

Robin smiled and kissed the top of Cordelia's head. "Guess we should get ready for our lovely night," he whispered lovingly.  
Cordelia stood up and stretched. "Well, I'll take a shower first. No peeking, Robin."

Robin blushed a bright red. "You'll never let me live that down, will you?"

Cordelia gave a sideways glance to Robin and smirked as she walked off to the bathroom with an overdramatic sway of her hips.

A/N: Got this one going. This chapter was a spur of the moment. I live in the Midwest of the U.S. and our weather is just weird. Want to start enjoying spring? Too bad here's another Sunday of snow for you.

Jadefiresaph: Thank you for the support. I always enjoy just reading a little bit of fluff. Makes the day feel so much nicer when i do.

Sergeant Daniel: I tell them the same thing. But ah well, to each his own. Thank you for the compliment, and I'm glad you enjoy. Lissa is 3rd, Olivia is my 2nd favorite. Has nothing to do with the three most popular of the future children now that I think about it XD


	20. Chapter 20: Reunion

Chapter 20: Reunion

"Severa, my hair's fine! I don't need it attended to like this." Robin tried shaking his head to free himself from his daughter's grasp, but she grabbed his head tighter and moved it back over to resume working on it.

"No, it's not. You are _not_ showing up to Mom looking like crap." As they knew, it was quite the reunion, as it was only a week ago that Chrom, Lissa, Severa, Lucina, and Morgan rediscovered Robin. The man had been missing for close to a year, and ironically was found in the same place Chrom and Lissa first met him. It was a touching moment, as the father and daughters embraced, and was only momentarily broken as Severa punched her father in the gut, followed up by explaining to her doubled over father that that was what he got for just up and leaving like that without telling his family first.

Robin only smiled as his daughter fussed over his hair and overall appearance, the Ylisse castle slowly yet steadily appearing on the edge of the horizon Robin took a deep breath as the castle drew nearer, and the closer it got, the more nervous he became, anxiously imagining just how Cordelia might react. Would she be elated to see him back alive, or furious at how he left her? Or maybe both?  
In what seemed like no time at all, though simultaneously feeling like an eternity, the carriage arrived at the gates to the castle. Robin stepped out of the transport, and gazed up wistfully towards the castle. His daughters waltzed up next to him, with Morgan being the first to break the silence. "Well, let's go in already. You'll definitely be cause for a sigh of relief for Mom, what with all the suitors that kept coming to see her."

Robin's face fell upon hearing this, slowly turning his head over to Morgan. "Suitors? What do you mean by 'suitors'? She's married… to me! There's no need for suitors."  
The party turned their heads away from Robin, obviously nervous, as he was giving off an almost murderous glare from the thought of jerks trying to flirt with Cordelia. Morgan anxiously scratched her chin, and attempted to explain. "Well, technically, you were considered dead. Furthermore, most of the suitors were mainly interested in the rise of rank associated with being wed to the captain of the pegasus knights. Hah, they were pretty bad at it, though. One didn't realize Mom was in the room as he was very openly insulting her precious daughters."

Severa flashed a mischevious smile at this. "My younger self smacked him with her wooden sword in the shins when he got a bit too close for comfort. Let's just say that Mom was livid, considering the words that guy yelled out."

At this point, Robin was almost giving off the same malevolent aura as Grima would. "Who is this suitor, and where does he live? I plan on burning his estate to the ground!"

Chrom, trying to keep quiet but feeling the need to interject, immediately waved his companion off. "No, no, no. I'm certain the thrashing Cordelia gave him was sufficient punishment for him. I do believe he had to be carried off the grounds."  
It took quite a lot of persuading and assuring for Robin to calm himself and prevent him from committing arson - for now - and to instead, finally, make his way into the castle. Severa and Morgan ran off to grab Cordelia and left Robin in the foyer to wait and contemplate the moments to come. Lissa and Chrom decided it was best to leave as well, giving the family space.

Robin waited by tapping his foot slowly, then increasing in tempo, and soon began pacing with increasingly worried thoughts. Before long, but not soon enough for the anxious man, a cluster of footsteps could be heard drawing ever nearer. Robin turned, both relieved and worried, towards the approaching footsteps to see Severa and Morgan leading the arms of his beloved, her eyes closed behind a piece of cloth, denoting the surprise that was likely to follow. Cordelia was smiling, and just seeing it made all of Robins worries leave his mind. And in Robin's eyes she was a vision of beauty. Her long crimson hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail, and had even decided against wearing her armor. Instead wearing a simple white sundress.

"Girls, is this really necessary?" Cordelia laughed as the girls led her to a position just a few feet in front of Robin.

"Yep. It's definitely necessary. This is a surprise, and it's essential that there's no peeking!" Morgan said as she turned her mother to the right spot, facing Robin. "And be ready to open your eyes in 3...2…1!" And with that, Morgan removed the blindfold on her mother's eyes, and in a matter of seconds Cordelia's surprised smile soon turned to an wide-open mouth shock as she stared, mind seemingly blank, at her lost husband, returned at last. Robin's smile remained, even widening, as he stepped towards her, his arms opened up wide in a joyful embrace.

"Cordy... I'm home." As soon as he wrapped his arms around her, he felt a fist go into his gut, and he doubled over, feeling that perhaps the elation at his return was not mutual.

"You go on and follow through with that plan, causing you to disappear, go missing for months, and then you finally, miraculously, come back home, and all you can say is that?" Cordelia crossed her arms and stared down at Robin, her bangs somewhat concealing her crimson eyes, though tears were seen streaming slowly down her cheeks.

Robin coughed, looking up at Cordelia with an apologetic face from his doubled over position. "I'm... sorry?" He got back up to his feet and stared at her, processing as much as he could in that moment. "I'm sorry, Cordy. It won't make up for the time lost, but I swear, I will never do it again. I'll never, never leave this family alone again."  
Cordelia merely raised one eyebrow as she kept her pose rigid. "Really? You mean to tell me that if there was another apocalyptic event that would endanger the safety of our family that you wouldn't sacrifice yourself if it meant that it wouldn't come to be?"  
Robin's response was only a blank stare, as he had no real response. "I mean… just… hey, that's an unfair question."  
Cordelia sighed and raised one finger vertically before him. "One more hit. That's the least you deserve, and definitely what I'm owed for what you did."  
Robin sighed with relief, and then took in a deep breath and braced himself. "Ok. That's fair," he stated, acceptingly, as he clenched his eyes shut in anticipation.  
But a heavy hit didn't come - instead, a light slap on the cheek was all that he received, and immediately following it, both of his wife's hands rested softly, tenderly, on his cheeks. Cordelia swiftly brought her face closer and lightly pressed her lips to his. They stayed like this for only a few seconds, and even when their lips parted, their heads rested lovingly against each other. Cordelia positioned Robin's head directly in front of hers so that they stared into each other's eyes. "I missed you too, love. So much."

Morgan and Severa stared happily at their parents, but a shrieking sound diverted all of their attention as a little white blur ran past the two girls and slammed into Robin, it loudly yelling, "DAAAAAAADDDDDDDDDDYYYYY!"

The younger Severa gripped onto Robin's legs as she stared up at him. "YOU'RE HOME! WHERE'D YOU GO?! WHY'D YOU LEAVE WITHOUT A GOODBYE?! DID YOU BRING ME ANYTHING?! DID YOU KNOW THERE WERE SOME MEAN GUYS TALKING TO MOM WHILE YOU WERE GONE?!"

Robin laughed as he bent over and lifted little Severa into his arms "Yes well I can tell you later my little champion. First your big sister told me you protected mommy from some dastardly knaves."


	21. Chapter 21: Nightmares

Chapter 21: Nightmares

"Robin, please!"

"This isn't you!"

` "Fight it!"

"Dad, stop!"

And then a vision; blood on his hands, and the cause just before him. Looking up, he saw a young girl who looked a lot like Cordelia, but much younger, with shorter hair, and standing in front of a giant portal, her hand outstretched to someone beyond his vision. The scene was more shocking with the addition of a spear, impaling the young girl through the abdomen. A scream from deep within the portal came tearing through Robin like knives and he saw another girl, with what looked like strikingly familiar white hair, was being pulled through the portal and screaming out, "MORGAN!"

What he could only assume was his own voice rang out clearly in dark, maniacal laughter as the dream faded away.

All the surrounding voices, and that haunting vision, came rushing into Robin's mind as he bolted out of his bed and onto his feet screaming, truly panicking, and in a cold sweat. He felt a searing pain on the back of his right hand and grasped it tightly with the other. Squinting through his pain, he could have swore that he saw the burning mark look as if it was writhing and faintly glowing. Almost as soon as the pain began, it quickly faded, but Robin remained panting, clutching onto his searing appendage. Motion in his peripheral to the left caught his attention, and he turned to see Cordelia, leaning on her arm in bed, as she was roused out of her slumber.

"Robin, what's wrong?" Cordelia mumbled as she rubbed the sleep from her tired eyes. She looked closer to see her fiance in his state of shock and scooted closer, placing a concerned hand on his shoulder. "You look like death! Is everything okay?"

Robin took a deep breath and turned to face Cordelia with what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "Yeah, I'm fine… just a nightmare, I guess."  
But Cordelia didn't return the smile, and instead moved her hands down to his, holding them close to her heart. "You may be a great strategist, Robin, but you can't lie to me," she quietly spoke, her head down, with a slight chuckle at her own words.

Robin felt a genuine,small smile spread across his face at hearing the caring words from his fiance. "I can't explain it. Just a number of jumbled voices, and then… two girls I've never seen. One of them was killed, I think… and it was by my own hand. I wasn't watching, like a spectator in an audience. It was me. I saw myself doing it, but had no control."

Cordelia pondered on this troubling scenario for a minute and stared down at the hands she was holding, looking more intently at the dark purple mark on his hand. "Do you… think it may have been a memory from your past?"  
"I don't know. I hope not, I hope for Naga's sake that isn't who I used to be. The person in that vision was sociopathic. I could feel that he wanted nothing but death and bloodshed." Robin started shaking again as the dream began to resurface in his memory.

Cordelia pulled him close and ran her hands through his hair, softly combing it to reassure him. "From what you've told me, I'm _sure_ that isn't you. You are not, nor will you ever be that person in your dream. You are a good and loving man, Robin. I know the man I fell in love with. What you saw might just be a dark fear of who you think you might have been."  
Robin reached his hand up to hold onto Cordelia's and rested his head on her shoulder. "Whatever I did in the past, I'm 100% sure that I didn't do enough to deserve you. I love you, my Dove."

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Inigo knew that he saw another portal open along with his, so whoever came through has to be close. Inigo, just emerging, immediately heard sobbing coming from behind a bush and saw Severa, clutching onto a bloodied rag as if her life depended on it. "Severa! Thank the gods you made it through. I feared the worst, that maybe you and Morgan wanted to be the last ones through."

Severa only cried harder as she clutched the cloth tighter. Inigo was worried, and crept closer to his friend. "What's wrong?" he asked, genuinely concerned. As soon as he got closer, he noticed the familiar purple trimming on the bloodied cloak. Soon realizing that only one member of their group had attire like that, a grim realization hit him. Only one, very pressing question came to his mind. "Where's Morgan?"

A/N: And we are back. Sorry about that. I may or may not have gotten distracted by getting into some new series, and a change in work, along with a bit of writer's block. Sorry again.


	22. Chapter 22: Forgotten

Chapter 22: Forgotten

"Cordelia, please, talk to me," a desperate Robin pleaded as he followed the silently fuming Cordelia around the castle halls. The redhead only huffed in response as she continued walking, not even caring to glance back at her husband. "I can't figure out what's wrong if you don't tell me why you're mad!"

As soon as those words left his mouth, Cordelia whipped around and glared at Robin, the gaze causing the shunned man to retreat a few feet backwards. "Maybe you should figure it out on your own, since you're so smart!" And with that snappy retort, Cordelia walked out to the castle stables, leaving the confused and worried tactician behind.

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"I just can't figure out what I did to make her so mad at me, Chrom. Y'know, I've been thinking on it, and I'm fairly certain I haven't said or done anything that would set her off." Robin sat behind his desk with his hands running wildly through his hair, desperately contemplating just why his wife was so angry with him.

"Well, is it her birthday? I know Sumia would be awfully mad if I forgot that," Chrom offered, leaning against a nearby doorframe as he tried to assist his friend's brainstorming. The exalt was silently thanking Naga that he wasn't in Robin's shoes at the moment.

"No, no, her birthday isn't for another month," Robin returned, now leaning back in his chair and pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Oh, so _that's_ why mom was so peeved at the stable. You forgot, didn't you, Dad?" Robin heard from off to his side from his eldest daughter as she appeared just beyond Chrom in the doorway. Robin, unsure of what she meant, turned towards her with an inquisitive look.

"Forgot what? Please, tell me, Severa." The young woman rolled her eyes but, willing to offer assistance, walked towards her dad, leaning down to whisper in his ear. Chrom craned his neck in closer, trying to hear what she was informing his friend of. As he looked closer, he noticed that the color began draining from Robin's face, clearly indicating that it was anything but good. Within seconds, Robin bolted out of his seat and, shooting a look towards Chrom like he was told that someone had died, quietly told him, "I forgot our wedding anniversary."

Chrom's face fell, understanding the gravity of the situation, and walked over to place a reassuring hand on Robin's shoulder, wearing a sad smile as he looked at the doomed man. "You will be dearly missed, my friend. We shall honor your memory."

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"How could he forget?! He goes on and on about how much he loves me, but can't even remember how special today is for us! It's only been a year, and he's forgotten!" Cordelia roared, furiously throwing handfuls of hay into the trough for her pegasus as Sumia brushed the mane of hers nearby.

"I'm not defending him on this, but the peacetime may be getting to him, what with all the documents that he has to look over and officials, from small villages and from Ferox and Plegia alike," Sumia casually remarked, keeping her attention on the steed she brushed, still trying to placate her friend.

"I know, I know... our work is important, but I can't help but be pissed at him about it. I feel bad, somewhat, but at the same time, I really don't," Cordelia huffed as she walked to the stable entrance. "I'll be back in a bit, Sumia. I need a breather."

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The irate redhead walked the halls of the castle, hoping it would calm her down, but even after several minutes of her pacing, the anger she held towards her husband burned strongly as ever. As she neared her shared bedroom at the end of her walk, she began to notice out-of-place rose petals appearing on the carpeted floor, growing more and more in quantity the nearer she got to her quarters. As she approached the hardwood doors, seemingly coated with the crimson petals that littered the castle hall, she pushed the double doors wide to see Robin bent over a long table set up in the middle of their room, her husband organizing the various items coating the table. Cordelia coughed into a balled first, alerting the man who jumped in surprise and quickly turned about-face to meet her. "Oh, hi, love. You're back a little early than expected."

The slim woman crossed her arms at Robin, showcasing her lack of amusement, and looked down upon the table's contents. "So, you didn't forget,then?"

Robin smiled confidently. "Of course I didn't, darling! I just wanted to surprise you is all," he laughed, though nervously, as he brought his hand up to the back of his head and scratched at it.

"Robin, has anyone ever told you that you're a terrible actor? You were completely clueless this morning. I also know your tells when you're lying, like scratching the back of your head, so don't even try." Cordelia stared down her hunched-over husband, his eyes beginning to glance about wildly, anywhere but at her. Cordelia walked past him and investigated the table. The usual romantic dinner that Robin was ought to bring was set up, complete with candles and a full-course roast dinner. The rose petals from the corridor outside lead from the dinner table to the bed as the covers were pulled back invitingly, awaiting the occupants to return to its comfort.

"Are you… are you still mad?" Robin nervously asked as he dared to glance back to his wife as her eyes roved around the room.

"A little. I probably will be for a while. Would've been furious, though, if I came back and you had nothing prepared." She turned her gaze over to Robin, finally addressing the nervous man. "Got a little ambitious in how the night might go, though, didn't you?" Cordelia sneered, pointing over her shoulder to the heavily-adorned and well-prepared bed.  
Robin shrugged. "Well, I just thought that a redo at bedroom seduction was long overdue. Especially after that incident… with Sumia."

Cordelia's frown finally cracked as she remembered the embarrassing moment. "Haha, that pose was ridiculous."

"Oh, so I'm guessing you don't want an encore of my romantic advances, then," Robin snidely added with a daring, cocky little smile.

Cordelia rolled her eyes as she pulled out a chair from the table "Well, let's see how dinner goes first."


	23. Chapter 23: Wedding

Chapter 23: Wedding

"By the power vested in me from our holy creator Naga, I now pronounce you... Husband and Wife. You may now kiss the bride," a royal priest declared as he backed away, smiling, from the loving couple that stood before him. Without hesitation, as if rehearsed, the bride and groom embraced, holding a deep, passionate kiss before the congregation. Looking in, who would have thought that the pegasus knight would find love so tender and true during a time of intense war, hardship, and devastating loss? She could finally look back and smile, having achieved what she had only dreamed of for years prior: a happy life with a loving husband, and maybe, just maybe, some children of their own before long.

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"You wouldn't even think that a war'd ended not too long ago, eh, Bubbles?" the sweet-tooth thief cooed playfully as he lightly elbowed his companion at the table overlooking the newlywed bride and groom. "I know he's the exalt now and all, but this seems a bit too much, even for Blue."

Robin took a sip from his goblet as he looked up at his two friends who stood before the crowd. "Well, most of this is just formalities. I'm sure that if Chrom had his way, it would have been a lot more low-key. However, I think the combined might of Frederick and Sumia was able to convince him to let this happen."

Gaius leaned back in his chair as he eyed the tactician before looking up and repositioning the lollipop in his mouth. "Yeah, I guess so. Stumbles is one of the last ones I want to see mad," he admitted, turning his attention back to his conversation partner. "Oh, by the way, who do you think is gonna get hitched next?"

Robin rolled his eyes at the seemingly facetious comment. "Seriously? Are you actually gunning to place bets on which of the Shepherds gets married next?"  
Gaius shrugged, seemingly unphased. "Well, that, and who'll fall for someone next. Got a lot of bachelors and bachelorettes running around in our ragtag group of misfits. Just curious is all."

"I get the feeling you're only asking because you'd bet I'll be next," Robin said with half annoyance and half amusement, curious to see where Gaius's train of thought was heading. "Well, if that's the case, you should know I'm not dating anyone, and I wouldn't tell you who it was if so."

"Aha, you know me too well, Bubbles. But you gotta throw a friend a bone every once in awhile, doncha? How about this; if I guess it right, with just one guest, then you gotta admit to it, deal?"

Robin rolled his eyes at the thief's challenge, but shook Gaius's extended hand in agreeance. "Fine, but only one try." _It should be fine,_ the dared man thought. _He'll probably say it's Olivia or Tharja. They_ are _quite attractive after all, but not the one I'm pining after._

"Hmmm, thinking… thinking. Is it…" the roguish redhead paused as a smug sneer took over his face, confident in his guess. " _Cordelia_?"

At this, Robin immediately spat out his drink, falling into a coughing fit that was noticeable enough for Gregor, who sat on the other side of the coughing man, to lean over and slap Robin with a forceful palm a few times on the back. As soon as Robin had recovered from his shock-induced fit, he looked up at Gaius with an incredulous look and whispered, "How in the hell did you get that right?"

Gaius grinned, content with his good luck. "Well, you always seemed to rush off beside her into battle, oftentimes with the excuse of it being 'for tactical reasons,' but that's not all I've noticed. I saw the two of you talking every so often in the storage tent, and after the ordeal with Emmeryn, I heard you comforting her. After some time, whenever the two of you were in the same room, I could see you stealing glances at her." His smug grin widened, causing Robin to grow all the more red in the face. "Also, your pale complexion gives you away pretty quickly when you're blushing."

Robin was shocked at the sheer amount of details strung together from Gaius's detective work, even more so at the conversations overheard while he thought he and Cordelia were alone. "Well… you _are_ right, but it doesn't change much. I may love her, but she has eyes for another," Robin breathed sadly as he gave a somewhat envious look up at Chrom's smiling face.

Gaius was only confused at this moping statement. "What makes you think that?"  
Now Robin was the confused one, unsure of why Gaius wouldn't agree with his assertion. "All the rumors going around camp… the ones about how Cordelia is enamoured with Chrom. The one I almost always hear when she comes up in conversation. I thought Chrom was the only one who didn't know about it, but how did you not know?"  
"Oh, don't get me wrong. I knew. It's just a bit weird to me is all. I can't say anything about the validity of these rumors, but hey, don't take it from me. If you want closure, then you gotta talk to her yourself, Bubbles," Gaius said confidently, as he resumed his leaning position.

"Talk to her? About what?" Robin dared ask, feigning ignorance. He had a good idea what Gaius meant, but he was afraid that he may be right.

"Just tell her you like her, you wuss. The worst she can do is say 'no.'" Gaius unwrapped a second sucker and promptly popped it into his mouth as he finished his line of friendly advice.

"Well, I believe she could laugh at me, tell me 'hell no,' or even give a disgusted look, as if I'm just a bug." Robin plopped his head heavily onto his palm as he rested his elbow on the table. He had debated telling Cordelia how he felt, but his own doubts kept him from doing so, repeatedly imagining scenarios in which Cordelia rejects him.

"Well, either you go do it now, or I can, buddy." Robin looked up with a shocked and horrified expression at Gaius's ultimatum. "Don't give me that look. You need to come out and tell her, or else you'll be making it harder with every day you delay."  
Robin hated to admit it, but Gaius was right in his assertion. He stood up quickly and looked over at the neighboring table that Cordelia sat at, chatting with those she sat beside. Still, his doubts remained, and he returned his gaze to his sagely comrade. "Since when were you the love guru?"

"Haha, good luck, Bubbles," Gaius chuckled, ignoring the jab, and giving his friend two thumbs up as he watched Robin walk over to Cordelia's table.

"Excuse me... Queen Sumia, Princess Lissa, Captain Cordelia?" Robin politely bowed to each woman he addressed in turn as he reached the table of the three compatriots.

The girls looked up with mild surprise at the army's tactician's sudden appearance. Lissa giggled, being the first to respond. "Robin you can drop the formalities. This isn't that kind of event."

Sumia gave a polite smile as she looked up at Robin with a seemingly knowing glance, noticing the blush forming on the emboldened man's cheeks. "How can we help you, Robin?"

He kept his head bowed, hiding his face as much as he could without appearing rude. "Well… I was… h-hoping to have a, umm, word with the captain… in private."

Sumia and Lissa looked to each other, obviously but silently amused, and then to Cordelia. The redheaded pegasus knight stared at Robin for a moment or two before standing up and responding, making to follow Robin. "Of course. I was hoping to come talk with you as well. Lead the way."

Robin, all too glad to leave the questioning glances of his query's conversation partners, led the both of them out though the tall, glass, curtained doors onto the patio overlooking the castle's courtyard. Robin gestured to a bench on the edge of the patio, which the pair swiftly sat upon as they began to rest in silence. Cordelia stared vacantly, as if in thought, out into the courtyard while Robin gazed down at his two twiddling thumbs, hoping to piece together what to say before much time had past. After several moments of uncomfortable silence between the two, Robin looked over at the knight and she turned her head expectantly towards him, breaking the rising, almost palpable tension. Robin, feeling as though he may be able to follow through with his ambitions, opened his mouth to speak, but looking in her dark eyes for but a second caused his face to return to a bright red tone, and he turned away with an awkward cough.

"Robin? Is everything okay?" Cordelia leaned a little closer to the tactician as she voiced her concern, which caused Robin's face to redden even more, becoming more of a crimson hue.

"Yes, yes, everything is fine. I just... really need to ask you something, while I still have the courage to do so." Robin took a deep breath and shot up from the bench, turning with this momentum towards the object of his attention. "I know about your feelings for a certain someone in this camp."

Cordelia's face began to blush as well, both surprised at the sudden arrival of the personal topic and embarrassed at the declaration. "Y-you do? Who told you?"  
"Well… just about everyone knows, I believe," Robin replied, somewhat wistfully, and looked towards the courtyard for a bit, away from the inquiring face. His suspicions of Cordelia's crush on Chrom, he believed, were confirmed. "But you see, Cordelia... Chrom may have been oblivious to your love for all this time, but… I want you to know that he isn't the only one out there." As he got further along in his soliloquy, his attention on his words, he didn't notice Cordelia's flustered face turning into one of confusion. "You see… I love you, Cordelia! I may not be the object of your affections, but I had to say it to you. I'm truly sorry if this has made you uncomfortable, and I understand if you don't reciprocate the same feelings, but..."  
He kept his eyes closed tightly, mentally preparing for the worst, but a single question from a dumbfounded Cordelia brought him to reopen them in his own bewilderment. "Where did that come from? I don't have a crush on Chrom."

Robin, eyes now wide as saucers, fought to find his words. "But… really?"  
Cordelia nodded in response, flustered but seemingly composed enough to retort. "I do have admiration for him, as any knight does for her lord, but, really, that's about it."  
Robin had many, many questions racing through his head at that singular moment. "But… any time that I see you and Chrom together, you are always sighing contentedly around him. And of course, the camp's rumors..."  
"I was sighing, out of frustration, because you and I had our conversations when we were alone, but any time we were around the other Shepherds, you seemed to never even acknowledge me," Cordelia explained, standing up slowly and making her way over to Robin.

"So… the person you have feelings for, then..."

"Yes, Robin. It's you. For being our wonderfully adept tactician, it seems like you never even noticed." Cordelia laughed quietly, amused at the circumstance. "And you were just going on about how Chrom was the oblivious one!"

Robin, the realization hitting him like a bolt from the blue, became extremely flustered, and couldn't even think up a proper response, instead standing there in a startled pose. Cordelia smiled bashfully and pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear. The two gazed into each others' windows of the soul for what was mere seconds, yet feeling as eternity, until a voice roared out from behind a bush, shattering the tension. "OH, COME ON! KISS ALREADY!"

Robin and Cordelia looked over in surprise at the eavesdropping culprit. Gaius, now standing up from his hiding spot, revealed an adamant Lissa who, sitting next to him, tried, unsuccessfully, to pull him back down. Robin's impassioned smile quickly morphed into a disappointed frown as he stared down Gaius with the wrath of a god shining in his eyes. "Gaius. I better not hear that this was a bet, that the only reason you encouraged me to confess was that so you could win a bet. Please, tell me that isn't it."

Gaius, immediately pale-faced, did a 180 on his heel with impressive dexterity and walked briskly back to the celebration. The interrupted lover, still staring daggers into the thief's retreating back, turned back towards Cordelia as she rolled her eyes with a smile.

Robin, his flustered mind having calmed down, was quick to recover from the interruption. "So… where do we go from here?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The priest's lips were moving, but the couple at the altar couldn't hear a thing. As much as Robin thought it was a scenario only possible in romance novels, all his attention was on the love of his life. It was only at the last line did he snap out of his daydream, back into the reality that was far superior to any dream of his could be. As his focus returned, he heard only, "You may now kiss the bride".

Cordelia leapt into Robin's arms, holding him tight as they held a deep and passionate embrace set appropriately to roaring applause. Two members in the far back of the audience stood silently and snuck out the rear exit of the ballroom. The redheaded of the pair was wiping tears from her face. "So... that was mom and dad's wedding."

The platinum blonde, not showing any signs of being affected to the same, or any, degree, shrugged as she lead her sister towards the city. "It didn't even look like they were paying attention to a single thing, just staring at each other like the lovesick couple they are." The older sister made exaggerated retching noises as the younger laughed, amused at the jab towards their parents as the pair made their way into the urban area.

Back in the ballroom, Lissa quickly scooted over to where Gaius sat, watching the spectacle, with her palm held out before him. "You know, they got married during my proposed deadline. You lost the bet!"

A/N: Since last chapter was forgetting the anniversary I wanted to put out a little one for their wedding. Or for the most part Chrom and Sumia's wedding. Also to answer a question in the reviews: I would be happy to take requests, all depending on the topic


	24. Bonus Chapter: Celebration

Bonus Chapter: Celebration (Modern AU)

"Robin, time to get up!" A hand violently shook Robin's foot as he grumbled. He opened his eyes partially to see a blur of crimson hair, at which he immediately closed his eyes and groaned.

The sleepy tactician pulled a pillow over his eyes and groaned out a muffled, "Ten more minutes. Sleep is good," towards his assailant. Cordelia, not pleased, rolled her eyes and grabbed hold of the blanket covering the man, pulling it off of him in one swift motion.

"Come on, the day is young, and I have plans for our day!" Cordelia folded the blanket under her arm and, with a brisk step, exited the room as Robin continued to groan into his infinitely-comfortable pillow. However, after minutes of psyching himself up to get out of bed, Robin trudged into the kitchen and poured himself a bowl of cereal and a cup of juice. Reluctantly, the groggy man sat down at the home's table, sitting directly across from a wide-awake Cordelia who smiled brightly over at her tired husband.

"So! First, I think we can head out to the park for a bit of a hike, then over to that lovely restaurant we passed by a week ago, you know, the one that's a few blocks away from the movie theater, and _then_ I think we should head over to the same movie theater just after that." Cordelia listed all of this off in quick succession as she watched a much-less enthused Robin finish his breakfast.

Robin's eyebrows raised as he took the assault of information in, swallowing a mouthful of cereal and spoke up. "Quite the day out you have planned, huh. Is today that important?"

Cordelia smiled mischievously as she twirled a strand of hair. "Well, there may be one reason, but first, can you do me a quick favor? There's a surprise in the oven. Do you think you could go grab it for me, pretty please?"

Robin gave her a questioning look as he stood up and walked over to the fully-heated oven, and pulled down the oven door. "Cordelia, I don't really get the surprise here. All I see are two buns in… here." Realization hit Robin head-on as he stood up and turned back to Cordelia, who he saw wore a wide smile on her face as she held up a picture of a positive pregnancy test, with the words 'Happy Father's Day' on it. Robin was instantly left speechless as he stared wide-eyed at his wife.

Finally able to move his legs, he walked, as if in a trance, dreamlike, over to Cordelia, and as soon as he was close enough, she leapt up and wrapped her arms tightly around Robin's neck, and choked out between happy tears, "We're going to be parents, Robin. Happy Father's Day."

A/N: This one is a little bonus chapter that I thought of at the very end of Father's Day and wanted to get out as soon as I could. Hope you enjoy


	25. Chapter 24: Crush

A/N: This one is a request from doctor3027 as well as a sort of prequel chapter to chapter 3.

Chapter 24: Crush

"Now, Robin, there's no need to worry. Any friend of mine is a friend of yours, right?" Chrom smiled confidently as he wrapped his arm around tightly Robin's shoulder, walking him forward. Robin, being a recent transfer student to the school, only knew Chrom and Lissa, as their parents were friends with his mother. Though it was better than nothing, it still didn't do much to ease the anxiety brought on by meeting others, but Chrom's help was appreciated nonetheless. "Look, they're all great people. With some, it'll take time to get to know them, but I promise, they're nice people! We all have a study group after school every other day. Silly though it might sound, we all ourselves the Shepherds," Chrom said, trying to reassure and prepare his friend for the encounter ahead of him.

Robin looked over his shoulder to Chrom, not nearly as sure or confident as his escort. "That's an… interesting name, but I don't see why it's an appropriate choice for a study group," he confessed.

Chrom proudly crossed his arms and declared, "We call ourselves the Shepherds because we help to herd each other into the future!"

"Wow. That is… incredibly corny," Robin laughed as Chrom punched him playfully in the shoulder. The two turned a corner and ran into someone, though it was more like that someone quite literally ran into them. The transfer student didn't know what had happened at first, but, as the shock began to wear off, he realized that something or someone must have rammed right into him, sending him sprawling onto the floor with that someone laying right on top of him.

Groaning emerged from the stunned Robin as the figure on top of him sprang up nearly as quickly as it fell. "Oh, gawds, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do that! I was running late to practice and I tripped on a loose tile back there, and I didn't mean to and I'm _so_ sorry!"

Robin rubbed the back of his now-aching head as he propped himself up on a shoulder and stared up at the person who ran into him; a girl, wearing a purple and pink uniform with bushy brown hair and wing clips. Robin smiled, acknowledging the awkwardness of the situation, and stood up, brushing himself off as he did so. "It's no problem. I should have been watching where I was going."

Sensing an opportunity for introductions, Chrom walked between the two. "Speaking of, this is Sumia. She's part of the Shepherds as well." The klutz blushed as she took notice of Chrom being within just feet of her, even more so that he was witness to her falling. "Hey, Sumia, are you okay? Your face looks a little red. You didn't hurt yourself in the fall, did you?" Chrom asked, concern in his tone for her

"No I'm perfectly okay! Just a little clumsy is all. Haha, a shame I can't just go to a mechanic and ask for them to balance me out and make me… less… clumsy," she coughed, with an awkward silence ensuing as neither Chrom nor Robin had a clue as to how to respond. Sensing the atmosphere she had created, Sumia quickly held out her hand to Robin as a means of changing the subject. "N-nice to meet you, I'm Sumia, as Chrom told you."  
Robin took Sumia's hand and shook it. "Hi, I'm Robin. Nice to meet you as well."

"So, this is where you've been Sumia. You're late, you know?" a commanding voice boomed from behind Chrom and Robin, which caused them to swiftly turn on their heels. Walking up to them was a girl wearing a white and red athletic uniform, matching her long, crimson hair. She stopped suddenly as she saw just who it was Sumia was talking to. "Oh, h-hello, Chrom. So sorry to intrude." She then turned over to to her query. "Come on, Sumia. Phila will be _pissed_ if we stay any longer."

"Right, sorry, Cordy. Nice to meet you, Robin!" Sumia waved off the two boys as she ran forward to meet halfway with Cordelia, who had turned and started making her way towards her destination, and the two walked off together.

"Well, Sumia got to meet you, at least. She's one of the friendly ones in the group, but I wouldn't push it. She's got a _mean_ right hook." Chrom laughed as he rubbed his jaw in remembrance of a past memory, and he looked over to Robin. However, Robin had barely registered Sumia's farewell or Chrom's comment as his attention was squarely on the spot where the two girls had turned a corner and left his view. "Robin? Helloooooo!" Chrom clapped his hands onto Robin's cheeks, and the white-haired boy shook his head to clear it of his daze.

"Who, uh… who was that? The girl who left with Sumia?" Robin didn't fully realize why he was so curious as to who the mystery girl was, but found himself dying to know all the same.

"Who? Cordelia? She's Sumia's best friend. She's a genius, as I'm told. Excels in academics, music, and the equestrian racing team our school hosts. Not many schools have a horse team, y'know, but ours does. Why do you want to know?" Chrom looked closer at the face of the transfer student and saw a bit of pink on his friend's face, past what his slaps had brought. "Haha, no way! You like her, don't you!"

Robin turned with an incredulous look to Chrom, not entirely sure himself, but not wanting to give his friend the wrong idea."What!? No, that's not it at all! Just wanting to know more people and make more friends, that's all." At this, he looked off to the side, the pink in his face beginning to shine a tad brighter in his embarrassment.  
Chrom frowned and grabbed hold of his friend's shoulders. "Alright then, if you want to make a new friend, then let's go down to the track right now. I'll introduce you."

"Wait wait wait wait wait! I haven't even thought of what I'll say! I'm a mess too, I can't talk to her looking like this," Robin blurted out, licking his palm and dragged it over his head, trying to slick back a tuft of hair that was sticking up. His heart was racing in his chest at the thought of talking face to face with a girl he had just met.

Chrom stopped forcing his friends movements, opting to try a new strategy. "Admit it. You have a crush on her. It's written all over your face."  
"W-we don't know if that's what it is."  
"Oh, it definitely is."

Robin turned his head away again. He wasn't sure, but thinking on it, just her appearance had left him speechless. "I can't be sure about this. I only met her a minute ago and didn't say a thing. What if it's just a passing feeling? Infatuation? What if we share nothing in common, or if she's just repulsed by me in general? I don't know, I can't rush into this… I need time to fully think things through, to process this."  
Chrom sighed at this, frustrated with his buddy's reactions but interesting in helping him through it. "My friend, you think too much about the simplest of things. All it takes is one conversation. Friendship and love aren't things you can just learn about in a book. You have to experience them!" Robin kept his head turned away, the red on his face fading, but still apparent. "How about this: I'll give you to the end of the year to make a move. If you don't, then I'll intervene and get you to talk to her, one way or another. Deal?" With this, he shot out a sideways palm before the nervous boy.

Robin donned a look of annoyance and glared at Chrom. "That doesn't sound like a fair deal in the slightest. How about until, college maybe. That'd be a good amount of time for me to thinking up something to say."

Chrom groaned, but kept his hand extended. "You'll just make yourself worry the longer you wait, you know. How about it?"

Robin gave Chrom a conceding smile as he took Chrom's hand in his. "Please, if it takes me to college, and I don't say anything to her, then you can call me an idiot until the end of time."


End file.
